Intertwined
by Ebony Mitsu
Summary: The world was made up of the Castes. War between them was nigh eternal, seeming without end. Hatred and distrust existed for so long, but can other emotions replace them? Can a select few overcome fear and band together to restore hope?
1. The Die is Caste

**There has been war between the different Castes for centuries, constant and never ending war. But old prophecies have a habit of coming true and old fairytales one of coming alive. War between the four Castes of 'Shifters, Vampires, Witches and Humans is now second nature, but can an emotion other than hatred replace it?**

_**(A.N.; Vampires can have special abilities here and born ones can survive sunlight, made ones can only stand so much depending on their age. 'Shifters include werewolves but i'll call em 'Shifters anyway for my ease, Witches can be boy or girl it don't matter in real life so why should it here, and some very special Humans are born with special abilities too. Also i've put in some OC's so expect em, and yes, one or two might end up paired with canon characters but i promise the majority won't.)**_

**Prologue; The Die is Caste**

The world was made up of the Castes.

There were five Castes in all; the 'Shifters, Vampires, Witches, Humans and the Celae, with the last split into two sub categories and the first into many.

The 'Shifter Caste was made up of what could be loosely termed _families_; individuals belonging to the same animal. Animal natures tended to be hereditary but occasionally there was an odd individual; it was common enough not to be rare, but rare enough not to be common. The physical appearance of an individual belonging to this Caste more often than not in some way related to their animal nature. They were allergic to silver and could live to be up to three hundred years old. The most common family was that of the Wolf.

The Vampire Caste consisted of _clans_; the more powerful ones were the Uchiha, Yamanaka and the Hyuuga. The vampires could be divided into two types; _born_ and _created_.

Created vampires had a constant need for blood, although this grew less over the years, and they couldn't stand sunlight, though this too would dissipate with time, and each held alliance to a certain clan. They were also infertile, rendered so by the vampiric blood.

Born vampires, those born naturally, could stand sunlight and could conceive children. They were considered the ruling elite of their Caste, and belonged either by birth or by marriage to certain clans. Each clan had a Lord, and they controlled both the natural and created vampires within their clan. Some natural born vampires had the use of an ability, though this was rare and often passed through family as a _bloodline trait_.

All vampires were allergic to white ash wood and were immortal, though they could be killed.

The Caste of the Witches was split into _houses_; three of the oldest and most prominent being Senju, Subaku and Akahayate. Their leader was the legendary Tsunade Senju, High Princess of all Witches, and they were governed by a council, as were the first two Castes. Abilities within the Witches' Caste could vary, and were gifted to newborns entirely at random. They, like the others, were a separate path of evolution from the Humans, yet it could be argued that they looked the most like them. Witches could live as long as 'Shifters so long as their magick didn't kill them first.

The Human Caste were comparatively weak when compared to the other four; to match the strength and speed of even the witches they would have to train hard, they were not long-lived and could be killed _very_ easily. However nature had found a way around this. Some humans were born with special abilities, making them superior to others, and these abilities were gifted at random, though the humans who gained them were drawn to each other.

The fifth and final Caste was one unknown almost entirely to the other four, and was also the most peaceful. The Celae were beings of energy, what humans might call spirits, and were immortal and nigh invincible. They were divided into two groups; beings of light, the _Tenshi_, and those of darkness, the _Youma_, what a human might class as either angel or daemon respectively. And yet they did not war with each other; they co-existed, living only to balance each other. Each side had its own hierarchy, of sorts. They delighted in watching events unfold in the world around them, sometimes even interfering to tweak circumstances in whichever favour. They played games with the lives of others, not truely knowing pain or death.

Between the Castes of 'Shifter, Vampire, Witch and Human there had long been hatred and distrust born of misunderstanding. It is natural to fear what is different and unknown to you. However things became much worse when one individual gained more power than any other before them by doing the unthinkable and impossible; killing a Celae.

No one knew who it was; their identity was a mystery to all. Suddenly a sense of unease descended upon the world. Hatred and distrust grew to ever higher proportions. The wars began.

After centuries of bloodshed, nobody could remember what began the wars at all. The world was living in a state of perpetual imbalance. In an attempt to give it the chance to straighten itself out the Celae made a decision; to gift the world with a prophecy of light.

_Between darkness and light,_

_Between hatred and love._

_Trapped by the die that is Caste._

_Marked in pair, marked in life,_

_Drawn together,_

_Set free by the key that is Light._

In time this prophecy was lost like so much else, though the legacy remained in the form of fairytale and myth much like the Celae themselves. The idea that one day a group with members from different Castes and ranks would unite to bring down an ultimate evil, and in doing so unite the Castes once more, seemed preposterous to many.

But myth is always rooted in some way in fact, fairytale somewhere in truth.

And so it was with this one.


	2. By Moonlight, By Shadow

**Chapter One; By Moonlight, By Shadow. . .**

Silently, moving swiftly through trees, three females, two older one younger, ran on to their destination. Suddenly they slowed, stopped, and the older women turned to the younger for confirmation. She blinked, switching on her special sight, and nodded to them. They proceeded much more cautiously now.

The three were assassins of the Vampire Caste, considered to be among the best. One a redhead with deep brown eyes that flashed gold, the second with wild raven hair and garnet eyes, the youngest of the three with hair of indigo silk and eyes of pale lilac. All were dressed head to toe in black, but only the redhead carried an obvious weapon; a pair of sai daggers sheathed on her hips. She removed one now and glanced back at the other two.

They nodded silently.

The redhead nodded in reply and turned to face forward again, creeping stealthily through the trees until the glow of firelight began to pierce the leaves. Then they stopped, staying perfectly still, poised on branches. They couldn't afford to rush this assignment; one wrong move and not only did the target escape, but the hostage would be killed rather than taken with the bandits.

The ravenette signalled for the attention of her comrades and began to form a series of gestures and signals with one hand. When the message was finished they nodded in agreement; find a better vantage point, observe, locate the targets, get in and get out.

Being careful of traps, they moved quietly through the trees surrounding the clearing.

These particular bandits were not idiots, hence why three top assassins had been sent their way. But they were stupid enough to kidnap a very highly ranked Vampire, the daughter of a Lord no less. It was the girls' job to get her back and dispense justice upon the bandits. They were judge, jury and executioners.

After some five minutes of tense observation they had a rough plan. The bandits were rowdy with drink; clearly they thought themselves far enough away that they wouldn't be caught. There was a large circular tent at one end of the camp which doubtless contained their leader and, judging by her absence outside, the hostage. The rest slept in simple bed rolls on the forest floor with little to no cover from the elements.

The girls looked at each other. The ravenette had a gift for illusion, and so it would be easy for her to hide them from sight as they sneaked into the main tent, but an illusion of that size and depth, requiring cover of sight, hearing and possibly scent would sap a lot of energy from her quickly. The redhead had a talent for blood control, but again there were simply too many and she would tire too quickly for their liking. No, one only would go into the main tent, and that role would fall to the youngest of them. The other two would prove a distraction as soon as she was in there and as a method of disposing of the rest. They would just have to be as careful as possible so as to not endanger their comrade and the hostage.

With a resolute nod the indigo-haired girl slipped off. The other two waited until she was near the tent before they moved into position.

The redhead took one down almost as soon as she got there; slitting his throat with her dagger as he slept. She moved on to another, absently noting that her sister in arms had already quietly disposed of the two nearest herself. It was after each had killed three or four that the trouble began.

A loud gurgling sound erupted from the tent and was quickly cut off. Those not too drunk to notice instantly looked that way, showing varying mixes of unease and suspicion. One moved towards the structure just as the redhead moved towards another bandit and he caught sight of her. Dull brown met bright gold for an instant before he began to shout and she lunged, silencing him with a swift stroke of her dagger across his throat.

The fight had begun.

The two women wove an intricate and lethal dance, and while outnumbered three to one they still outmatched the bandits in skill.

Two bandits looked at each other and then began to fight each other, ignoring the girls; the illusionist had employed the use of her gift.

Eventually, after sustaining what for them at least were minor injuries, they stood over the defeated gang.

Their indigo-haired comrade came out of the tent, a small red stain decorating her cheek, with the girl held in her arms. The two had the same eyes if not the exact same appearance; the younger girl was slightly darker of skin and had dull brown hair. This was not a surprise as they were sisters.

Mission accomplished. They were heading home.

* * *

><p>"Took you long enough."<p>

The three looked in the direction of the rough male voice. It had been a long night and they were tired, but it seemed that their hope of a simple end to a complicated night was not to be.

Out from the shadows stepped a tall, very muscular male Vampire with spiky, unruly hair. The lower half of his face was covered by a mask, and he wore no shirt. Instead a strap wound its way around his torso, holding a large sword to his back. He wore grey trousers and black combat boots.

"What was the problem?" he asked.

The redhead tossed her hair back over her shoulder. "Why would you like to know, _Momochi_?" she asked mockingly. Behind her the other two girls smirked.

He scowled. "I told you never to call me that." he said darkly.

"Since when do I do as I'm told if I can help it?" she responded airily. Then she grew serious again. "Now answer the question, _Zabuza_."

Zabuza snorted. "Lord Hyuuga is starting to get a little concerned."

"There is no need for him to get concerned." the ravenette spoke up. "We have his daughter right here." she gestured to the girl sleeping in her sister's arms.

"Good." Zabuza turned to go. "Just make sure you report to the council this time." with that he faded into mist.

The ravenette glared after him, even though she knew by her fiery-haired friend's state of ease that he was long gone. "I don't know why we put up with him." she muttered.

The redhead laughed. "Because he's as good as us, maybe even better." she reminded her. "Remember, he's nicknamed _the Demon_ for a reason." she smirked when the ravenette's response was to scowl.

"We'd better get going to the Hall of Council." the youngest of them spoke up for the first time in hours. "Zabuza is bound to report our return. If we don't report in soon we'll get in trouble." her voice was much softer than the others', melodic and gentle.

With a nod, a sigh and a mutter of "I'm always in trouble, once more won't make much difference." from the redhead, the three walked through the front gates of the Complex and headed for its centre.

The main Vampire Complex was the size of a large city, set out in a square grid that was divided up into sections and contained smaller complexes for the clans. Many of the inhabitants nicknamed it _the Midnight City_. There were two surrounding walls around the entire thing; the outermost wall being the thickest – about eleven metres thick and a few stories high– with large, imposing gates each complete with a special portcullis made of a mixture of titanium, iron and silver. The inner wall was a little less than half the size, and the gates in this wall were further along the wall than their outer counterparts. Although smaller they were no less impressive for their architecture. Both walls were regularly patrolled, both on top via a pathway and between. Inside these walls were streets, shops and houses. The Created lived mostly in houses around the outer edges, where only a few clan compounds stood and these were often much smaller. Further towards the centre lay the larger complexes, with a smattering of slightly larger houses and mansions, then a square-shaped ring of parkland. Right in the middle were the Hall of Council, Hall of Judgement, Hall of Death and Hall of Remembrance; the heart of the Complex. Right in the middle of these four hallowed halls stood the Midnight Tower, one of the most ancient Vampire buildings that still stood.

The three women flitted from rooftop to rooftop, tree to tree, street to street, until they reached the hallowed halls. There they went into the wooden Hall of Council, where the heads and Lords of the Clans, and the elected Lords of the Created, met to form the Council. They paused only long enough for their identities to be confirmed by the guardsmen and then walked inside.

Architecture and decoration within the Hall of Council was simple yet elegant; neutrally coloured walls, wooden beams and frames, sliding paper doors, the odd tapestry and painting providing splashes of colour here and there. It was tastefully done, as it was likely to be, for Vampires, no matter how cold and indifferent they might seem, liked their little luxuries.

After climbing up stairs to reach the main council chamber at the heart of the Hall, the three paused in front of the gilded wooden doors while a guardsman checked them over warily.

Zabuza was leaning against a wall nearby and offered them a cold, cruel smirk. "I was hoping you wouldn't show again."

They ignored him, which broadened his smirk further, and entered the main council chamber when allowed. This room was lit more dimly than the rest of the hall, and was richly decorated in gold and silks. On the floor in the centre were rugs and seating cushions, against the walls by the doors were chairs for when required. A filmy, translucent curtain of ivory that shimmered with gold was hung around the edges of the room, with several feet of space between its boundary and the wall, and this space was sectioned off into many spaces with wood, each containing a platform with plush cushions on which sat a Lord. The girls walked until they reached the centre of the room, the youngest placed the small girl down on another cushion in front of them gently, and took their positions, kneeling on the cushions.

"My Lords," began the indigo-haired girl who sat in the middle, bowing until her forehead rested on her hands, "We have retrieved the daughter of the Hyuuga Clan."

There were mutterings around the room until one voice overrode the others. "Was there much difficulty in completing the task?"

The three girls stayed where they were, bent low in reverence to the Lords. "Only very little." spoke the ravenette, sitting to the left of the first girl. "They were a group of bandits, and thought only of ransoming the young Lady Hanabi Hyuuga. By the time we got there they were drunk, and so it wasn't as difficult as we had anticipated to dispose of them."

More muttering.

"And yet you took longer than expected." continued another masculine voice. "It is nearly dawn and you were sent at dusk."

"They had travelled further than we had believed, my Lord." explained the redhead respectfully. "If we had gone out sooner then they would not have gotten so far, though the distance they had put between themselves and the Complex was the reason their security was so lax. They believed themselves to be out of harm's way and beyond capture."

"And are they all dead?" it was the same voice.

"Yes." all three said at the same time.

Now the indigo-haired girl sat up straight and reached for a bag tied at her waist. She untied the cords and placed the bag in front of her. "We bring you the leader's head as proof of their demise. The Lady Hanabi is unharmed but for a sleeping drug they had used on her." she resumed the low bow.

"Well done, Lady Hinata Hyuuga, Mistress Kurenai Yuhi, Lady Kaida Yoshido. The Hyuuga Clan thanks you for your efforts in retrieving our daughter. You may go." the voice belonged to Lord Hiashi Hyuuga, Hinata and Hanabi's father.

"Thank you, my Lord." they replied. They got up, keeping their heads low as they backed away five paces before turning and walking out of the council chamber. Zabuza was blissfully absent.

Once the great doors had closed behind them they all sighed with sheer relief.

"At least we won't be sent out on assignment for a while." said Hinata as they walked outside.

Kaida snorted. "Don't you believe it. They've sent me out straight away more than once."

Hinata stretched, cat-like, and then looked around as they entered the new dawn. "What are your plans for the day?" she asked them. "I was thinking of calling on Ino."

"A long bath and then sleep." Kaida said. "I don't plan to wake up until at least early evening. Then perhaps a meal." this earned chuckles from the other two. "What about you 'Nai?"

"More of the same, although I don't intend to sleep the whole day away." Kurenai replied, pulling the hood of her heavy cloak over her head to protect her from the dawn. She could stand several hours of sunlight it was true, but it drained her to do so.

"We don't need to sleep." pointed out Hinata gently.

"Doesn't mean it's not nice every now and then though." Kaida retorted with a smirk. "Excuse me girls, I have a date with my duvet." she faded into shadows.

With an amused shake of their heads, the other two faded away too.

_**(Hours later)**_

The summer sky was stained red with the sunset, the bright colours, reds and oranges and pinks fading into deeper purple and then to blue, bled into each other. Hinata imagined an artist's hand sweeping a water-laden paintbrush over the sky, blurring the edges of the colours together. Already, on the horizon where the sky was the colour of her hair, she could see the glittering point of light that was evening's first star.

She rubbed her bare left shoulder, in the place where she knew the tattoo to be, and shivered as she watched the colours deepen, darken, until the sky was a uniform blue-black speckled with tiny lights. When the last colour had bled from the sky she sighed and went from her balcony into her room and stood before the full-length mirror, frowning.

Nobody knew where the mark on her left shoulder and upper arm had come from, it was something she had been born with. She called it a tattoo, although birthmark might have been more appropriate given the circumstances surrounding it, because tests run by her father's best medics had proven that the black mark was formed from a mixture of ink, blood and something else that they couldn't identify. Any and all attempts to remove the mark failed utterly; it either came back within a day or the method simply wouldn't work, although those methods worked on normal tattoos so why not on this one?

And how could one be born with a tattoo anyway?

She wasn't the only Vampire to be born with the strange mark, she knew; there were several others that lived within the Complex walls. Kurenai had one, as did Ino and Hinata's cousin Neji, although the markings themselves and the position of the tattoo upon the body differed with each person. She suspected there were others too.

Hinata's mark swirled down to her elbow. She knew that Neji's was on his left hip. She didn't know where Kurenai's was exactly but she did know it was somewhere on her back. Ino's mark lay on her right forearm and spiralled around it like a vine to her hand; the girl wore an elbow length fingerless glove to hide it. Each were formed from a collection of swirls and curving lines set into a pattern around a central shape, and so far no two had been identical. The central shape in Hinata's was a kite with a long, tapering tail.

So far nobody, and there were several clans attempting to research the strange phenomena, could determine either the cause or the purpose for the tattoos. But they did know one thing; the ink used in all of the known ones had the exact same composition.

She shrugged and pulled on an elegant, lavender silken kimono with a dark dusky-pink obi, wondering whether Neji had returned from his own assignment out east. She decided to see if he was back.

Slipping out of her room, she turned several corners until she was in front of his door and knocked, waiting politely. No answer. Either he was asleep or he wasn't back yet. She decided to ask a servant for news.

Everything was quiet until Hinata reached the central staircase in the main clan building – the building in which the main Hyuuga branch lived.

Vicious, angry snarls and growls and the undeniable feline hissing of Vampires met her ears as she descended. Her curiosity was soothed when she reached the front courtyard, which one had to walk through to get to the foremost buildings of the Hyuuga compound. Her cousin, Neji, was grappling with a long chain, the other end of which was attached to a big and very angry golden-orange fox. A little off to the left Neji's partner, Sasuke Uchiha, was grappling with another chained creature; a large wolf this time with a chocolate brown coat.

As she watched the two creatures began to tire and both winced in pain whenever they pulled against the chains. She realised why almost as soon as she saw this; the chains were bright and sparkling silver. These two were 'Shifters.

Another Hyuuga Vampire darted in on each animal and shot a dart at each of them; within seconds the two became drowsy until they finally collapsed.

Neji and Sasuke were both breathing hard.

"What happened?" Hinata asked, coming down the steps from the main house and cautiously inspecting the wolf, which was nearer.

"Caught them scouting the outer wall via the forest when we got back." Neji told her grimly. "Council ordered them to be kept here until they decide what to do with them."

The Hyuuga that had tranquillised them, Neji's father Hizashi, raised an eyebrow. "That's unusual. Normal procedure would mean they'd be put to death immediately."

Neji nodded and Sasuke _hn_'d his agreement. "Some of them thought there was something strange about them."

"You mean besides the fact that one's a wolf and the other a fox?" Hizashi pointed out calmly. Wolves tended to travel in packs, and it was rare to see a group of mixed animals.

"Yeah." Sasuke replied. "Something like that." but he wouldn't say more.

Hinata had by now moved to inspect the fox. His ears were tipped with sooty black, a colour matched by his four paws, and the tip of his tail and his underbelly were pale blond. But other than that he was pure golden-orange. No . . . wait . . . not pure . . .

"What is this?" she asked, pointing to the fox's shoulder that she could see.

Upon hearing her query, Neji and Sasuke moved closer. Very faintly they could make out patches of fur that were ever so slightly darker than the rest, forming a faded pattern.

"We're not sure." Neji told her. "The wolf's got one too, but in a different spot. We can barely make it out on either of them."

"It's like they've got birthmarks in their human forms that have imprinted on the fur and not the skin." Hizashi commented, sounding curious.

Hinata nodded, standing up and stepping back as Hizashi and two or three others helped the boys to drag them into cages around the back. The chains would stay on, rendering them in this form until they were removed. She followed, curious, and watched as the two were hauled into separate cages.

"You interested in one of them, Miss Hyuuga?" asked a servant. Hinata half turned to him briefly before turning back to the sleeping 'Shifters.

"The fox." she said. "He has . . . unusual colouring."

"That he does." Hizashi had just wandered back over and looked pensive. He shook his head and turned to go back inside. "Perhaps your father will allow you to keep him as a pet."

Hinata watched him go and then turned to look at the 'Shifters again.

* * *

><p>"Hina!" the blonde poked her head around the gatepost. A few sentries, all of them Created with ties and allegiance to the Hyuuga clan. She stepped out fully and asked in a polite but arrogant way that only she could "Please tell Lady Hinata that she has visitors in the courtyard." and with that she swept past them, followed by Kaida and Kurenai.<p>

The three waited under a cherry blossom tree while the sentry went to fetch her. It was sunset.

"Ino, must you always be so arrogant?" asked Kuranai, though she was shaking her head in amusement, one hand on her hip and the other hanging free. Today she wore a black kimono with burgundy embroidery and a matching burgundy obi.

Ino, the blonde, was wearing ice blue with green embroidery that resembled vines and a glacier green obi. "Of course, show any weakness and they'll walk right over ya." she winked and smiled.

"Here she is." Kaida spoke calmly. She bowed to Hinata as the younger girl neared, out of respect to her as the hostess but also as her clan was of higher status than her own. Kurenai bowed lower; she was Created, although older than most, and so was of lower status than any of them. Ino's bow was shallower, as her clan ranked between Kaida's and Hinata's.

"Welcome." Hinata smiled sweetly. "Is there something I could do for you?"

"Word on the street is you've got yourself a couple of 'Shifters cooped up in here, Hina." Ino winked again. "Come on, let us see them! You can't keep 'em all to yourself." she wagged a finger.

Hinata turned a light shade of pink that her milky pale skin did nothing to hide. "It's true. Neji and Sasuke caught them near the walls and the Council ordered their imprisonment here until further notice." she turned to go and then beckoned to them with a small smile. "Follow me."

The first thing Ino did when she caught sight of them was gasp. "Is that a fox? I thought they were rare!" she danced a little closer and looked from one to the other. "They're so big!" she scooted a little closer to the wolf, who watched her balefully from one eye as he lay down in a corner.

Standing beside the cage holding the fox, Hinata offered what on any other would have been a wry smirk but on her was just a smile. "They are male, Ino."

"Really?" Ino circled around the cage so she could see the wolf from behind. She was just turning away when she caught from the corner of her eye what Hinata, Sasuke and Neji had seen the day before. "What are those markings?"

"What markings?" asked Kaida, who had been watching the fox watch Hinata.

"These markings." Ino pointed.

Kurenai was the one who actually moved around to see. The wolf appeared to still suddenly as she neared.

"The chains are silver and attached to this side." Hinata informed them as she watched Kurenai move to the opposite side. "You can touch them if you wish, but be careful. The chains might not prevent his head from turning all the way and he could still bite."

Ino nodded as Kurenai knelt and lightly brushed a fingertip across one of the swirls on his back. The wolf flinched from the light contact.

"Is he hurt?" Kurenai asked, looking at Hinata through the bars. The lilac-eyed girl shook her head, frowning slightly. Even Kaida had raised one eyebrow, not to mention the fox was staring at him weirdly. She traced a curve, trying to see the pattern that was slowly emerging.

Ino, meanwhile, had skipped over to the fox. He actually moved a little away from her, looking startled.

"Ino be careful." Hinata scolded.

Kaida's eyes shifted to the Hyuuga heiress now in surprise, but she said nothing.

"Such an unusual colour." Ino was practically ignoring Hinata, and the other girl shook her head; this was so much like Ino. "Hey, he's got markings too!"

"I know." Hinata tried not to sound impatient, although Kaida heard the note even if Ino was ignorant. "We still haven't fully noted the pattern."

Ino nodded. "Gorgeous eyes though." she giggled. "Wonder if he's this cute in his human form."

Kaida shook her head, "The gods help us."

Hinata made an odd little laugh; she felt a little uncomfortable with her best friend saying that for some reason.

"D'you think he's ginger?"

Even Kurenai looked up.

"Ino!" Hinata sounded embarrassed and mildly angry.

Kaida just kept on laughing, a sign that she was well and truly out of mission-mode. "Oh my! Gods . . . _ginger_?"

The wolf let out a growl that could have translated as a snigger. The fox looked deeply offended. That was until Kurenai went back to tracing the pattern with her finger and the wolf stiffened again and let out a small whine; now the fox was sniggering.

"You know, Ino," Kaida began casually, "You could just raid their minds and find out all about them."

Hinata bit her bottom lip, watching and listening, waiting. She wasn't sure that she liked that idea. But when she tried to figure out just why the reason escaped her. The fox was sitting very still now, and he looked worried, as did the wolf, who had lifted his head and was watching the blonde very carefully.

"I could." Ino mulled the idea over in her mind. "Might take a couple of minutes though. D'you think we'll have time before anyone comes out to check on us?"

Kaida shrugged.

Still kneeling next to the wolf, Kurenai also felt a little uncomfortable with the plan; she felt like she'd be betraying something if she let it happen. And for some reason she felt drawn to this wolf in the same way that Hinata felt a fascination for the fox.

They were quiet for several minutes; two looking on anxiously, one calmly, the fourth thinking.

Finally, Ino nodded. "I'll do it." she paused and then said, "I'll read the wolf first, if you don't mind."

They nodded, all wondering why Ino was suddenly apprehensive about the fox; Ino didn't understand why either, in fact she felt apprehensive about doing this to either of them, but with the wolf it was a lesser feeling.

She knelt down as near to the wolf she could get while still looking it in the eyes. The wolf watched, a mix of curiosity and apprehension showing in it's dark eyes. Ino took a deep breath and then activated her ability. Her body slumped, alarming the fox, who became even more shocked when the wolf suddenly jerked.

Kurenai laid a hand on the wolf's shoulder reassuringly, knowing that all that had happened was Ino pushing the wolf's consciousness to the back so that she could raid his mind without being disturbed and causing him harm.

_Ino was floating in shadows, shadows with diamond-bright patches, like being surrounded by smoke. She ignored the warning growls echoing around her and floated through._

_Images were flashing past her, before her, through her. People, places, things. An old man she could feel had a family connection to the wolf; a father? A young boy. Cousin? Nephew? Brother? She saw a large village sprawled in a forested valley, the yellow roofs a stark contrast to the green, a river winding its way around and providing a natural barrier. She saw a house – his house – and she saw his friends; a man in his twenties with silvery hair, a man with white hair and red marks with a weird grin standing next to a blond boy about her age, a young girl with brown hair in an odd style, two men who looked like father and son – _Gods those outfits are _awful_!

_There was a chuckle from somewhere in the smoky shadows. _Yes they are, now get out of my head.

_Ino whirled sharply and saw the brown wolf nearby. As she watched the image morphed into a man in his twenties with spiky brown hair and dark eyes. So this was his human form? Not bad._

No need to have a fit, I was only curious. _She could feel something burning and she scratched her neck and collarbone. The burning-itching sensation did not go away, but it steadily got worse._

_The man watched her for a little while. He wasn't wearing a shirt and he wasn't facing her head on, so she caught a glimpse of something on his back that she couldn't see clearly. _What's that?_ She meant on his back._

_He knew that. _Nothing to interest you, little one._ Then, smiling a little tauntingly he added, _And I'd leave sooner rather than later if I were you; you won't last long.

Why?_ The burning was back, stronger now. It was really starting to irritate her. It was really starting to burn._

It's the silver,_ he explained, _you're experiencing what we are._ He meant him and the fox. _Now go. Go on, scram.

_Ino allowed the mouth of her astral form to drop open in shock. Nobody spoke to her like that! But she had no choice, she had to leave. The burning was getting too much. With a disgruntled nod she withdrew._

Back in her own body Ino gasped, breathing heavily. She still felt as though she were on fire! She felt something cool slip around her neck and looked up; Kaida, the only one not wearing a kimono, had removed a strip of cloth that was normally tied around her wrist and soaked it in the nearby well.

"Thanks." Ino gulped out. "So . . . it's burning, the silver it . . ." she couldn't speak.

"Are you alright, Ino?" Hinata looked concerned, as did Kurenai.

Ino started to nod, then she started to shake her head instead.

"Well, which is it?" Kaida prompted.

"I'm fine," Ino said after a pause, "Just still feeling after-effects." she paused again. That was better; she felt cooler now. "He's strong enough to interrupt the mind raid." she added.

The wolf was watching her curiously now, and there was a wry humour in his eyes that seemed to say _interesting_. But Ino – and Kurenai – could detect the annoyance underneath at being invaded so easily as well as the respect for Ino for her being able to do it and stick it out for so long.

"What's his name?" asked Kurenai.

Ino paused, trying to remember what she knew. "Sarutobi." she rolled the word around in her mind. "It's all I got. I don't think it's a first name."

"It's not," interrupted Kaida calmly, "It's the surname of an old, well-known wolf family. They go back at least a couple of centuries." the wolf gave her a startled glance – the wry humour was back, tinged with grudging respect – and the girls looked at her too, so she shrugged. "Sai was asked to check out a small village by the mountains that they own. He told me about it."

The wolf mulled this over now; maybe if he got out of here he could warn his father. Though that was looking to be a pretty big if.

Ino, meanwhile, had moved to the fox cage. The fox was now looking very jumpy, throwing pleading glances to the wolf. He only offered the fox a small growl that in a human would have been a snort or a grunt; it seemed to say _suck it up, can't be avoided._

Kurenai decided that she must be going crazy if she could understand wolves; it wasn't a Vampire talent and she wasn't a wolf.

"There was something on his back though." Ino continued, trying to get a good look at the foxes eyes. "It looked like a birthmark or a tattoo . . . Kaida can you do something? He's moving around too much and I might miss and then where would I be?" Floating around in the atmosphere, that's where she'd be, but she didn't see any sense in letting the captives know that.

Kaida nodded and closed her eyes; when she opened them again they glowed scarlet, and the fox suddenly froze and she tasted his rising panic, a metallic tinge on the tip of her tongue.

"Thanks." Ino took another deep breath and then she slumped. The fox quivered under Kaida's control and she let it go; it was now under Ino's power.

Kurenai went back to discerning the pattern on the wolf's – _Sarutobi's_ – back.

_Black tainted red. Shadows that pulsed with something. The heat here wasn't just the burn of silver, it was the burn of something else, something searing that she couldn't discern. It was alien to her._

_She saw the same village – odd to have a fox in a wolf village – two faceless people that faded – parents? - more people, some that she recognised from Sarutobi's memory. Other images._

_Something was hovering at the edges, something that wasn't the fox's – Naruto's – mind at all. It was something else, that strange alien thing. She could feel the raw power behind it._

_**Get out!**_

_It shoved her out of the young fox's mind on a wave of pure, raw power._

Ino nearly fell back in her haste to get away from the cage, her light blue eyes wide and scared.

The fox shook it's head, then it saw her and seemed to droop. The wolf winced.

"Ino!" Hinata was beside her in an instant. "Ino, what's wrong?"

Ino raised a shaking hand and pointed to the fox sitting a little forlornly in the cage. "Wh-what are you?" she stuttered. "Two minds! You . . . you have two m-minds!" she was badly shaken.

Kaida raised an eyebrow; she hadn't moved from her spot. Now that she thought about it – and asked her own inner demon – something did feel a little odd about that fox.

* * *

><p>Hinata couldn't sleep.<p>

She felt restless, ill at ease. It troubled her. She hadn't felt this way since she was a little girl worrying about the next test in her lessons, her next training session.

Irritated, she tried standing on the balcony, but that did little to ease her. She sighed, pulled on a long, loose, dark blue kimono that she used as a dressing gown – it had been her mother's – and left her room to go for a walk.

The compound was unusually quiet for this time of night; Hinata wondered where everyone was. She trailed idly through passages, thinking the past few days over in her mind. Ino had been in such a state that Kaida had had to carry her home. It had been a strange evening, to say the least. And now here she was, wearing her loose, lilac silken dress and her mother's old kimono, walking around barefoot. If anybody saw her they would've gently but sternly guided her back to her room and left her there and she'd still be restless.

Sighing quietly, she trailed a delicate hand over the wooden walls as she passed, thinking.

Hinata was the eldest daughter of the Lord Hyuuga, and by birth was first in line to take over as head of the clan when he saw fit. But she knew he wasn't certain whether she was fit to lead the clan and preferred to wait until Hanabi was a little older before making his decision. But he still passed on the occasional lesson, the occasional word of wisdom to his eldest.

Sometimes she thought it saddened him to look at her; she knew she looked the image of her mother, who had died when Hinata was only a few years old. Clan tradition dictated that he should remarry, so that if anything happened to Hinata then there were other heirs to take the mantle in her place. Hanabi was the product of this second marriage, and her mother still lived, something she envied of her little sister.

If she were honest with herself, and she could only be so at times like this, when the building was quiet and there was nobody about to put up a façade for, then she would admit that she didn't exactly relish the idea of leading the Hyuuga clan. She would be ruled by the elders, as her father was in a way, only more so because she was a woman and so they would be the real power behind the clan. Some clans didn't have this tradition; Kaida's didn't, for several reasons, and neither did the Akatsuki clan for Konan ruled them.

If she were honest with herself, as she only could be at times like this, she'd admit that all she wanted was freedom. Release from the constraints of clan life, from the burden of being first in line, from being a high-ranking aristocrat. From this whole damn life!

But where could she go? And it would make her a rogue if she ran away, and Neji would be forced to come after her, and Hanabi, and she couldn't do that to them. Wouldn't.

It wasn't until she felt the breeze billow out the folds of the blue silk and saw and felt the caress of the moonlight that Hinata realised that she was standing in the back courtyard, where the cages were.

Almost without even consciously thinking about it she glided over to the fox's cage and slid down the bars, her back to the cool metal. The wolf was asleep; she could hear his deep and slow breathing. The fox she couldn't hear, didn't, until she heard it flop down behind her and felt it's brush slip over her silken sleeve.

"I couldn't sleep." she said, speaking quietly, gently, as always. She didn't know why she felt like she had to speak but something urged her to.

The fox's brush raised slightly then flopped again; an acknowledgement.

"Do you ever get the feeling you're stuck somewhere, waiting for something, anything, and you feel like you're standing still forever and it never comes, while the whole world just flies on by?" she tilted her chin up to the cloudless midnight sky and sighed. "I feel like that, that restless. I hide it from everyone but I do."

The tail flopped again, and she heard a low growl now that sounded almost like a comforting word.

"Ino told me your name is Naruto, is that right?" she sensed rather than saw his head rise and turn her way. She heard the clink of the silver chains. "Those must be irritating." she observed, her voice neutral. "Hi Naruto, I'm Hinata."

God, If her friends saw her doing this they'd think she'd finally lost it. If her father saw her doing this he'd go ballistic to say the least.

She felt something nudge her shoulder gently through the bars and turned to see the fox facing her now, looking at her quizzically with big blue eyes in his golden-orange furred face. He inclined his head, it looked for all the world like a bow when he bent his front legs, then looked at her again. She giggled a little and inclined her head to him. His tail swept through the air; he was pleased.

Looking at those eyes now Hinata felt something, she didn't know how to describe it. She could only think of it generally as a connection of sorts. Kinship and . . . something else, something that ran deeper. She could no longer think of the fox as an _it_, only as a _he_.

"You must miss your home." she said, turning back to face forward. "There must be people there that are worried about you." she saw him move to lie beside and a little behind her and he let out an almost human sigh.

"I doubt anyone would miss me here if I left." she said, more to herself than to him. "Sounds terrible I know, but it's true. My father prefers my little sister, Hanabi. Most of the clan do actually. The only family that might really miss me is Neji, maybe Hanabi." she paused. "Ok, Ino would miss me, a lot. And so would Kaida and Kurenai. They were here earlier, you scared Ino, Kaida had to carry her home." a giggle escaped her then.

The fox was watching her closely, a little puzzled by what was going on but willing enough to just go with it. Something was obviously troubling this girl, and he might as well listen to her; there was nothing else to do anyway.

"I guess I just feel trapped by it all." she concluded. "Do you feel trapped?" she turned to him, then scanned over the chains, the bars, and his incredulous expression – if a fox could express incredulity – and chuckled apologetically. "Sorry, I guess you would seeing as you're in a cage."

Hinata frowned when the words had left her mouth; for some reason she didn't like seeing him in there.

She dismissed the odd thought and continued speaking. "I just want to get out of here. Do something. I mean, I work on missions and things yeah, but it's like that's not enough." she frowned deeper; she really didn't like seeing him locked up. Nor the wolf, although that feeling was a little less acute. With the fox it was like a sharp hit, feeling almost like a betrayal.

"Hell with it." she muttered, getting up and dusting herself off. "Might as well rebel for once in my life."

He watched her, bewildered and a little startled by her sudden movement. At the same time he thought she looked very pretty in the pale moonlight, almost ethereal, what with the dark silk of the robe floating as she moved. She was definitely attractive.

He followed her shape with his eyes as she walked to a nearby hut and disappeared inside. Nearby Saurtobi stirred, disturbed by the movement, and looked up. He threw a puzzled look at Naruto – what's going on? - and then stilled when he saw the Vampire coming back with something hidden beneath her robe. He rose to his feet, growling almost silently in warning, knowing that she'd hear and thinking she meant harm.

So it came as a surprise to them both – even though Naruto hadn't believed for a second that she was going to hurt either of them – when she removed from the silk folds a keyring.

She sorted through them, muttering under her breath, until she found the one she wanted and slipped it into the lock. Slowly, carefully, she turned the key. There was a quiet little click and she paused, listening. The 'Shifters listened too. Then, watching the fox the entire time, she pushed softly on the gate.

Sarutobi didn't move a muscle; he was trying for the life of him to work out what was going on. He was sitting with his head cocked to one side, dark eyes sweeping between the Vampire girl and Naruto

Naruto sat up straight and still, eyes on Hinata, as she came nearer with a hand held out.

"Stay there, don't worry, I won't hurt you I promise, I just need to find the lock." she explained. He sniffed the air near her hand and his tail twitched; he'd stay still for her if she asked. She moved closer until she was kneeling in front of him and he could smell her scent; lavender and rain and something faint and slightly metallic with an iron tang, like blood. Which made sense since she was a Vampire.

Her small hands followed the links of the chain carefully, also brushing along his fur and sending little electric sparks through him. He wondered why; it was a new sensation for him. They almost obliterated the constant, steadily worsening burning of the silver; at the very least they lessened it to a more bearable level.

When her hands found the lock she lifted a silver key and turned it; another click and the lock sprung. Slowly, taking great care to avoid clinking the metal too much, she lifted the silver from around his neck and lowered it to the ground.

Naruto took several steps away and shook himself vigorously; it felt so good to be free of those damned chains! He padded back and nudged her shoulder again in thanks before creeping towards the door and sniffing the air.

Sarutobi was completely, utterly confused now. The girl was a Vampire, Vampires _hated_ 'Shifters, and yet she had just set free a Fox 'Shifter that she _knew_ wasn't exactly normal and was probably very dangerous. It was mind boggling! Why?

A small whine escaped his throat as Naruto and the Vampire moved out of the cage and towards his own.

"Don't worry." she whispered, looking at the keys again. "I haven't forgotten you, Sarutobi."

The brown wolf cocked his head again; why did she call him by his name? That was acknowledging his existence, his status as a being worthy of recognition and life. Why use it for a 'Shifter? Wasn't he beneath her notice?

Naruto had shifted back to his human form and was kneeling on the ground, watching, behind her. She was so intent on her self-appointed mission that she hadn't felt the surge in power that signalled the shift. The lock clicked gently and she walked in, again holding out a hand and whispering words of encouragement. Like Naruto he sniffed it before sitting still, allowing her to find the lock against his slightly longer fur.

When that one clicked open and he felt the chains lift from around his neck Sarutobi thought he might melt in sheer relief. He made some soft little whine in his throat in thanks and stood once she had put the chains on the ground, shaking himself before padding outside. It was only after she had left the second cage and shut the door behind her that she realised that only one of the 'Shifters was an animal.

"Oh." the sound escaped her mouth in a little gasp as the golden-haired young man rose from his kneeling position and held out a hand to her.

"My thanks, Lady Hinata, for setting us free." he whispered the words and smiled at her.

Hinata took the hand and shook it. "You're welcome, I guess." she looked around. "You'll need to leave soon. I'm not sure how long it'll stay this quiet. It certainly won't when they realise."

Naruto looked at her with respect and admiration as well as gratitude. "But you let us go." he said. "At risk to your own safety, I might add. You're an unusual Vampire."

"You're an unusual 'Shifter." she countered. He let out a half-embarrassed chuckle. They were silent a little while until the sound of laughter drifted quietly into their ears. "Come, I'll lead you near to a tunnel under the wall. It'll get you under them both and then you'll just have to keep out of sight of the patrols on top of the outer wall and on the other side."

Naruto nodded and the wolf stood and she led them through the streets of the Midnight City. The route she used took them past the Yoshido compound, which was all but deserted at any time; Kaida was the last surviving born member of her clan within the confines of the City, and most of the Created allied with the Yoshido clan had all but deserted the place; only one or two stayed there now with their Lord and master.

Unfelt and unseen by any of them, a pair of eyes watched them go from the shadows under a willow.

Hinata led them until they were a street away from the tunnel and then she stopped. "I can't take you any further. This is where I turn back."

Naruto clasped her hands in his, a gesture which brought her pale eyes up from the ground to meet his own. "Thank you for even taking us this far, Lady Hinata." he said warmly. "You didn't have to, and we appreciate it."

"We owe you a debt." added Sarutobi, now back in his human form, and still without a shirt. "If you ever need help you know where to find us. Ask for either Naruto or myself. My name is Asuma. Ask for us by name and help will be given."

She nodded. "Thank you."

"No, Lady Hinata. Thank _you_, for setting us free." he glanced over his shoulder and then nodded at Naruto.

"This is goodbye." Naruto raised a hand to his lips and kissed the pale skin there. "Until the next time, Hinata."

She blushed faintly and nodded, drawing back into shadows as she watched them take their leave. Naruto looked back once more, at the tunnel's entrance, and caught her eye for a heartbeat, then in a flash of golden-orange tail he was gone.

Hinata placed a hand over her heart and took a deep breath. She felt odd, but it was a nice kind of odd, the kind that made you feel warm. She felt that this little adventure had been well worth the trouble she might get into with her father and the Council. And she had the feeling that she would see them sooner than any of them believed.

It wasn't until she had returned – nobody had noticed her absence and it was still dark outside – that she realised something, and the sudden realisation made her sit up in bed and gasp aloud.

On Sarutobi's upper back, stretching across his shoulder blades, had been a series of graceful lines and swirls, forming a pattern that in some way resembled wings sprouting from a central diamond, a black mark on his skin like hers and the others'.

Naruto hadn't been wearing a shirt either. And Naruto had also had a black mark on his skin like Sarutobi.

Like Hinata.

The same pattern of lines and swirls around a kite, identical down to the finest detail.

On his left shoulder and upper arm.


	3. Of Fairytales

**Right then, i'm pretty sure i got all the kinks outta this one. If not please let me know and i'll probably tweak and correct this thing. I am my own proof-reader, since my boyfriend and little brother both read this but it was a coupla months ago when they looked it over and i've edited it since then. **

**By the way, as i'm not sure if i mentioned it before or not, there will be some mild swearing in this fiction (hence the rating), and of course with the likes of Jiraiya and Kakashi involved there's next to no way we can't have a few inuendos at least so . . . thought it'd be fair to warn ya all. And i'm not putting up a disclaimer because, let's face it, if i did own this cast and crew and the series, i would be a multi-millionaire by now and you'd all have heard about me right lol.**

**Thank you to my two reviewers, _Haruka Tenou Distant Sky King_ & _Taichi-Doragon Tentei_ (by the way, what does that mean? i'm curious lol) and also to those of you who have favourited &/or added Intertwined to your alert lists. I've got a better reception than i thought i would have; we all know how fast this category moves after all, and i honestly thought i'd get less notice than i have :D luv and hugs to you all!**

**Also, a quick note to _Haruka Tenou Distant Sky King_; Ruka-onee, unfortunately the pairings are already mostly planned out for the main bunch, however i will put a little something-something in here just for you and also because it'll add a bit of suspense, but i'm afraid it'll be at least a few chapters away. I'm ahead of you all by one or two chapters though at the minute so all's good for now.**

**Anyway, without futher ado, i present to thee, the audience, the second chapter of my Naruto fiction (which i sincerely hope i can finish, but you'll all help me with that right ;) )**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Two: Of Fairytales<strong>

Everything about 18 year old Shikamaru Nara seemed average. He was average height, he appeared a little skinny, had dull brown hair and dark eyes, both common enough features where he was from. He didn't exactly dress to draw attention to himself. Yes, everything about Shikamaru Nara seemed average at best.

Everything, that is, except for two things; his IQ, which rivalled many if not most of the Human Caste's best experts even on a bad day, and the mark on his right forearm that spiralled around the limb like a vine, tapering off at his hand.

Shikamaru didn't bother to hide it anymore; besides the fact that he was now old enough to have a tattoo – which is what the mark seemed to be however puzzling it was – it was just too much of a bother to hide it all the time. He didn't like covering it in concealer or his mother's foundation; it took too long and it was messy if not downright finicky. He didn't like wearing a glove over it like he used to in his high school days, after all who in their right mind would wear a glove in summer?

Besides, after so many years of having it, so many failed attempts to remove it – another aspect of his that baffled the experts – he'd grown used to it.

He knew there weren't many Humans that were marked like this; he'd met the only ones they knew about at the labs. There were only two others; a boy, at least he thought it was a boy, named Haku and an older girl named Ayame Ichiraku, and he was friends with them both. The scientists and experts seriously doubted the existence of others in the Human Caste.

But they did know of marked individuals in other Castes, even if they did not know them by name let alone be able to examine them. There were reports from merchants, travellers, enough to make it fact and not rumour.

Right then Shikamaru was on his way to meet with a couple of his friends that lived nearby at the local park.

Breathing in the fresh spring air, Shikamaru tried to relax. He couldn't. He didn't know why. All he did know was that he felt like he was waiting for something. Just that, just waiting, while the rest of the world slipped on by. He felt restless, and this anticipation thrummed through his being.

_'Today's the day.' _he thought to himself, watching a cherry blossom petal float past on the wind. He didn't particularly know how or why he knew it, but today was the day. Today was the day when Shikimaru Nara stopped standing still, stopped waiting, and began to move while the rest of the world stopped to wait instead.

Upon reaching the meeting spot, a small hill near the lake in the middle of the park, he lay down on the soft grass and watched the clouds drift by overhead. _'I wish I was a cloud.'_

The Human Caste was relatively untouched by the other three. The Vampires only used them as a food source, and feeding was governed by strict rules, although the further from the Midnight City the less the rules were enforced. The Witches took little interest in the goings on in the world of their closer kin, although they did observe, but Caste prejudice prevented them making any kind of alliance. The 'Shifters had long since learned to leave Humans well enough alone; the two Castes mixing only caused chaos for either side, for the Humans viewed 'Shifters as demons to be hated and feared, the 'Shifters viewed Humans as ignorant and stupid and never refrained from showing and saying it.

Thus the Caste of Human retained a sort of innocence and naivety that was almost childlike.

After a while, during which he figured out that his friends were late, he heard a familiar bark. This bark sounded again closer to him, and was promptly followed by a tongue licking the side of his face and rousing him from his dozing.

With a groan Shikamaru sat up and wiped his cheek off on his sleeve. "Akamaru."

The little white dog with floppy brown ears barked happily at his name. Shaking his head he scratched Akamaru's ears while they waited for Kiba and Choji to get there.

"Yo, Nara!"

Akamaru yapped again at the sound of his master's voice and scampered off to greet him as Kiba walked over the crest of the hill. The brown haired boy with red markings on his cheeks was soon followed by a larger, rounder teenage boy munching on crisps.

"Hey Choji, Kiba." Shikamaru raised a hand in greeting and let it fall again onto his lap.

"Hey Shikamaru." Choji mumbled around a mouthful of food.

"So, ya heard or what?" Kiba asked, his voice brimming with energy and grinning.

Shikamaru didn't even look at him, instead watching more clouds. "You finally realised what we all knew already."

Kiba blinked. "What's that?"

"That you're a dope." Kiba threw a handful of grass at him. "I'll take that as a no." Shikamaru shrugged. "I'll go with the second option."

"One of the hunter teams had a Vamp."

Shikamaru scratched Akamaru's ears again. The pup was Kiba's, and he'd had him since day one pretty much; the two were inseparable. "The operative word there being _had_."

Choji nodded. "She got away."

"She?"

The chubby teen nodded. "Female leech. She was supposed to be pretty too. Long blonde hair and bright blue eyes, creamy skin." Kiba cleared his throat and Choji, mildly embarrassed by his drift of topic, not to mention thoughts, hastily continued. "Anyway, she got away. Thing is she had this tattoo on her arm."

Shikamaru looked up.

Kiba nodded, pleased with the reaction. "It's true. They photographed her before she escaped. She's wearing this mesh glove on her right arm, goes all the way to her elbow, and it's pretty hard to tell, but if you look you can see it." he thought for a minute, his eyes on his friend's right forearm. "Actually, it kinda looked like yours."

For some reason Shikamaru felt a strange urge to see this photograph. "Can I see it?"

The dog lover stood up and searched through pockets, of which he had many. It was several minutes and several discarded pieces of paper and gum wrappers, even doggy treats, later that Kiba found what he wanted. "Here." he handed the folded page to Shikamaru. "They sent out a load of flyers this morning with her picture in case she was still in the area. They wanted to bring her back alive so they could study the tattoo and see if it was like yours and the others', but the drugs wore off sooner than they'd thought and she got free."

"Caused a helluva ruckus too from what my dad told me." Choji added; his father was on a hunter team. "A few of the guys are in hospital. They don't think one of 'em's gonna wake up again. It's like someone ransacked his brain or somethin'." Choji shook his head in a _what can I say_ sort of way.

The genius studied the image at the top of the flyer.

The Vampire was unconcious, lying on the ground. Her blonde hair had fanned out to one side and a long lock of it lay over her eye and draped across her chin and mouth. She was wearing a dark purple miniskirt over black short-shorts and matching purple sleeveless shirt with a high collar and a zip down the front; in the picture the zip was drawn up to her neck. Knee-high black boots, a light mesh covering her midriff, and darker mesh fingerless gloves, elbow-length on her right arm, wrist-length on her left hand, along with a similar mesh covering on her left upper arm completed the outfit.

Shikamaru thought she was quite attractive . . . for a leech anyway. But then, who had ever seen an unattractive Vamp? Even when covered in grime and god only knew what there was something about them, like you just knew that if you washed all that muck off there would be a gorgeous person underneath.

Even so, looking at this photograph something struck him about her. He didn't know what; it could have been the way her hair fanned out, pale gold over dark earth, or the way she was dressed or the way she was lying, looking vulnerable but still peaceful, like she was asleep and would wake up any minute.

There was just something about _her_ that called to him in a way that he absolutely didn't understand.

It irked him.

And yet it also tugged at him.

He took a closer look at her right – his left – arm. He could just make out the pattern of lines under her glove that twisted intricately around her forearm, like vines.

Rubbing his right forearm unconsciously with his other hand, he realised that he knew that the patterns were identical, even down to the small circle surrounded by delicately twisting curves halfway down. He supposed that the glove was supposed to obscure it, and probably in the midst of battle it wouldn't be noticed. Even looking at it and knowing what to look for he found it difficult to see each line.

"Mind if I keep this?" he asked, pocketing it anyway. "I don't think we've got one."

Kiba shrugged. "Go ahead."

They hung out for maybe another hour or so and then Choji left, saying something about his dad and dinner. Kiba left not long after. Shikamaru stayed where he was, cloud-gazing.

He was just dozing off again when he heard the roar.

It startled him awake and he sat up fast, looking around for the source of the noise. When he saw it two thoughts ran through his head; _'Oh fuck!'_ and _'What the hell is that?'_

At this time – early to late evening – the park was more or less deserted. Besides, he was far enough away from any dwellings that he doubted somebody would have noticed a huge, scaly, seaweedy _thing_ running around and called the Hunter Ops.

He was beginning to think that maybe it would go right on by without noticing him when it sniffed the air and turned to look straight at him.

"Oh man!" he had barely scrambled up and away when it lunged towards him and crashed into a tree instead. Shikamaru didn't stop to look; that would have been suicide, and as much as he wished to be a cloud in his next life he was neither ready nor willing to die just yet.

He heard shouts nearby; someone had spotted the thing chasing after him and would hopefully call in the Hunter Ops. Soon. Like maybe _now_?

Shikamaru stumbled and nearly fell heels over head but somehow he remained upright and running.

"Over here!"

Shikamaru didn't pause to think about the girl's voice that had called him over. He just heard her and ran like hell towards her. He caught sight of her a moment later; short pink hair wearing black jeans and a dark red long-sleeved top to the side of some trees. A feeling of relief crashed over him, startling him to the point where he nearly fell again. But she was there in an instant and together they ran hell bent for the safety of the trees with a huge, scaly, seaweedy thing tearing after them and hell bent on catching them.

"Now!" she shouted as they fell into the shadows cast by the leafy boughs, and a second later something rushed past through the air and impacted with the monster hard enough to knock it back and check its momentum.

When Shikamaru looked back over his shoulder he saw another teen standing at the edge of the tree line, one arm outstretched and his red hair being buffeted by a non-existent breeze. The creature was gradually being encased in something that moved fluidly, like water, but wasn't fluid at all, and all the while there was this rustling, rushing, pouring sound. It sounded like rain, but he knew the sky was clear.

The creature howled, the sound muffled as its head was covered by the stuff. Finally, when it was fully covered, the teen, his voice revealed him to be a boy, uttered two words as he clenched his fist.

"Sand Coffin."

The stuff, and the creature, imploded with a muffled _crack_. Slowly the stuff – was it sand? - eased its way back towards the boy, finding its way into a person-sized gourd that he placed on the floor. When the last speck had disappeared into the object he stoppered it and stood it upright before rolling his shoulders and looking back at them.

Shikamaru was no idiot; he could tell immediately what situation he was in.

A very dangerous one.

"Thank the gods." breathed the girl, sounding relieved. "Nice one Gaara."

The redhead, Gaara, nodded his head before turning his pale green gaze on Shikamaru, who was too stunned to say anything right then.

"Hey, are you ok?"

Shikamaru turned to face the girl. She was looking at him kindly, a small and very much relieved smile on her lips. Her eyes were also green, but were several shades darker than the boy's.

"You're . . . you're both . . ."

She nodded encouragingly, now looking weary as well, maybe even a little sad. "Go on."

Shikamaru gulped. "Witches."

The pinkette nodded again. "Yes, we are. My name's Sakura, Sakura Haruno."

"It suits." was all he could think of to say.

She smiled at him wanly and continued her introductions. "And this is Gaara Sabaku." Shikamaru turned to the guy, who inclined his head in cold civility, before looking back at the girl, Sakura, again when she spoke. "And you're Shikamaru Nara, right?"

He stared at her, mouth agape. "H-how do you-"

"We've been watching you." she told him gently. "You and several others. Because you're marked."

Now that he was breathing somewhat normally, and actually looking, he could see black lines printed on the skin on the left side of her neck and disappearing beneath the deep crimson fabric of her shirt.

"Why?" he croaked.

The state of his voice seemed to concern her, for she reached behind her and pulled a still sealed bottle of water from a dark rucksack and handed it to him. "Here, sorry I should have thought." she watched him carefully as he drained half the bottle in one before he paused to breathe again.

Sipping the water now he watched her back. Gaara had by this time moved to somewhere a little behind them and was sitting against a tree with his own water bottle. When his eyes flickered from her neck to him she nodded.

"Yes, we're both marked."

"The tattoo on his forehead isn't . . ." he realised that despite the nightfall he could see clearly and looked around. "How . . .?"

Gaara gestured to a point behind Sakura; a small white flame hovered in mid air.

"Oh."

Sakura giggled a little, but answered his question. "The one on his forehead is one he put there himself. His mark is on his calf, left leg."

Shikamaru nodded absently. "But I don't understand, why-"

"Not here." she stood and held out a hand for him to take, intending to help him up. "We can't talk here."

It was only now that Shikamaru realised that he felt kinship rather than hatred towards these two Witches. It was an odd thing to realise; usually the hatred and prejudices were instinctive and hostility the first and only reaction. But to actually feel friendship . . . To treat each other as equals . . . That was something rare.

Instead of instinctive disgust, he only felt an instinctive trust for the two.

Nodding silently, he took her offered hand. No sooner had she lifted him did Gaara place a hand over theirs too and instantly darkness engulfed them.

* * *

><p>"<em>Is he alright?"<em>

"_I think so, just overwhelmed I think."_

"_Thank the gods, I was worried for a minute."_

"_Are you sure it's him Sakura?"_

"_Yes, look at his arm."_

_Someone lifted his right arm and he felt a fingertip tracing a curve before they placed it beside him again. "Good work. Gaara, go and fetch Lady Tsunade."_

_A door opened and closed._

"_I think he's awake Shizune."_

Shikamaru's eyes opened and closed again and he squeezed them shut. With a groan he sat up, raising one hand to his temple as he did so. Hands instantly touched his shoulders, steadying him. "What happened? Where . . .?"

"We slip-streamed. I'm sorry, it's my fault." Sakura explained quietly. "I should have warned you but there was no time. People were getting too close and we couldn't stay there much longer." her green eyes were sad, apologetic. "I should have warned you. I should have asked."

Only now did he realise with some panic that he was not in the park but in what looked like a hospital room. Sakura was sitting on the edge of his bed, chewing her bottom lip nervously, and another woman – Shizune? - was standing on the other side, checking his pulse.

"You seem fine." the dark-haired woman said. Her black hair was cut short and her eyes were as dark. "I think it's just mild shock." She inspected a cut on his forehead and tutted. "Might as well clean that up before Lady Tsunade gets here." she raised a hand and pressed her fingertips to the wound, closing her eyes to concentrate. He saw green light from the corner of that eye and his panic rose another notch. The woman was a Witch.

"There, all finished." she noted something down on the clipboard in her arms and sighed. "He needs rest, Sakura, so look after him ok. Make sure he doesn't overexert himself for a couple of days."

"Yes, Shizune." Sakura smiled.

The door opened again and a woman with light blonde hair tied in two pigtails, a small blue diamond over and between her gold-brown eyes and a rather ample chest strode into the room.

"Shizune, Sakura, how is our guest?"

"Shocked." Shizune replied, in what was clearly meant to be an irritated and authorative tone. The blonde took no notice as she peered at Shikamaru's arm. "He needs rest, Lady Tsunade." she added when the blonde began to peer into his eyes.

"Where the heck am I?" blurted Shikamaru, unnerved by the scrutiny he was under. "And who the hell is this?"

The blonde chuckled. "Feisty, this one. I'll bet we can work out who his counterpart is." she chuckled again. "It is my pleasure to meet you, Shikamaru Nara. I am Tsunade, the Witch Princess. These are my aide, Shizune," the tall thin woman from before bowed low, "My student and adopted daughter Sakura," Sakura smiled at him warmly, "And her cousin, Gaara Sabaku."

He hadn't realised Gaara had walked in again, but then the blonde woman had demanded all his attention from the word go.

"You are in the Witches' capital, Konoha."

"Say what?" Now he panicked.

"We had to get you away from there." Sakura explained gently. "They've infiltrated your town, probably most of the Human towns are under their control in some way." she added, sounding grim.

"So you kidnapped me?"

"No! . . . Yes . . . wait, look if you'll let me explain,"

"I'd like to see you try!"

"You're not helping me!" the previously friendly green eyes were now fierce, angry and seemed a few shades darker. She sighed and closed her eyes. "This isn't working." she took a deep breath and then looked at him again. The fierce anger was gone, replaced by grim determination and excitement that increased as she spoke. "Look, you were born different right? With that mark on your arm. Nothing could get rid of it, nobody's even sure what the hell it is, let alone what it's for."

He nodded slowly.

"Well, that's why we were watching you, and it isn't just Humans or Witches that are being born with marks like this. Vampires and 'Shifters have been spotted with them too. Actually, there are more of them than there are of us."

In the background Shizune pulled a manilla folder from under her clipboard and passed it to him. It was full of photographs of people of different ages, and some animals that were mostly wolves. He leafed through them, still listening, more curious now than he had been, until he stopped at a certain photograph and he froze.

"We don't know why," Sakura was continuing, not noticing his shock, "But over the span of about twenty years or so a few individuals over the entire world were born, each bearing individual marks that seem to be tattoos. At least, they're all made of the same composition of black ink, blood, some herb residue and something else we can't explain as anything other than energy. And yet how could those marks have gotten there? They're obviously man made because they're consistent with a regular tattoo; they look to be healed the same way and how else could ink get into your skin? But how can you be _born_ with a tattoo?"

She paused, finally noticing his stare. "What's wrong?"

He shook his head. "It's nothing, just," he reached into his trouser pocket, "I've seen this girl before."

Sakura leaned over and looked at the photograph upside down. "Oh, that's a Vampire. She was first seen in a merchant town, that's where the photo was taken. We know who she is, we just can't approach her. We'd get killed you see."

Shikamaru pulled the flyer out of his pocket and unfolded it, lying it on his lap beside the photo in his hand. The photo was obviously from a few years ago; she looked younger and her hair wasn't as long and she was dressed different. But it was the same girl all the same. A bandage was wrapped around her right forearm.

"Who is she?" he asked quietly.

"You know her?" Tsunade asked.

He nodded slightly. "A hunter team caught a Vampire the other night, but she got away. They took this photograph of her," he showed them the flyer. "Thing is she woke up before they got her back to a lab. They wanted to check out her arm." he pointed out the markings mostly obscured by mesh glove. "Some of the Hunters are in hospital and they don't think one will wake up again. They think she did something to his mind."

"That makes sense," Tsunade said thoughtfully, "because she's a Yamanaka." when he looked at her blankly she sighed and rolled her eyes. "You Humans are going to regret not paying more attention to the other Castes beyond simple prejudice." she ranted quietly. Sitting herself on his bed, she began to explain. "You know the Vampires are divided into two categories right? Born and Created?"

He nodded and she grinned. "Good, else I'd call you an idiot, and everything we've discovered on you suggests you're anything but." She picked up the flyer again and sighed. "Well, the Born are divided again into clans. Some are more important than others. There used to be this one . . . oh but it's an extinct clan now." Tsunade shook her head. "She," she tapped a finger on the flyer image, "is from the Yamanaka clan. They're not the highest of the high, but they're not small fry either."

She looked at him and he nodded, understanding so far.

"I take it you know that certain traits run in families? Appearances? Personality types? Psychological and physiological issues? Gifts of power?" he nodded. "Born Vampires are like that. Some clans have a main ability that gets passed down through the generations. For the Yamanaka clan it's certain telepathic gifts. They can invade your mind, push you back and take control of your body, discover your thoughts."

Shikamaru stared at her.

"I know," Tsunade said, correctly interpreting him and nodding. "Not exactly easy to fight, but they do have weaknesses." another sigh and she tapped the photo again, facing him more directly now. "This little beauty is one Ino Yamanaka. She's the only daughter of the head of the clan, Inoichi. She has an older brother, Deidara, so she's not next in line for the throne, as it were, but she's still pretty tough in her own right. It's odd, because Deidara doesn't seem to hold the clan trait anywhere near as strongly, but we think it's what the two siblings wanted." she chuckled. "She's actually a little like Sakura here."

Sakura gave a small smile that looked slightly forced. Shikamaru suspected Tsunade teased her about this a lot.

"Ino also has a secondary trait, or at least we suspect she does. A gift for healing. It's not as strong as her telepathy, which is coming close to off the scale, but it serves her well. Her brother has a secondary talent too. I wouldn't call him a pyrokinetic because he can only make things explode but you get the idea. We don't think their father has a secondary gift, at least we haven't found record of it, but then sometimes these things just pop up. It's how the clan bloodlines first started."

_Ino_ . . . the name fitted. What was more it felt familiar to him, though he'd never heard it before.

"You seem to know a lot about them." Shikamaru ventured.

"We try to know enough to identify the marked and those closest to them. Besides, ever heard the saying _know thy enemy_? Our Caste may not get as much attention from the Vampires as the 'Shifters do, but we get enough."

He nodded, leafing through more photos. There were several of a girl with long blue hair and pale pearl eyes, several of the wolves had faint markings on their bodies. The wolf pictures, one or two anyway, were clipped to pictures of people who had similar colouring; obviously their human forms.

"Someone keeps trying to tail others with the tattoos." Sakura told him quietly. "We're not sure who it is yet. We already rescued two Humans who are marked. I think you know them. Haku and Ayame?" she nodded when Shikamaru's head shot up. "You'll see them tomorrow. But someone tried to kill them. We only just got there in time. And several times our spies have reported that the others we know of are being followed. That creature last night, it was sent after you."

He stared at her. "Why would-"

"We don't know." Sakura cut him off. "And we're not sure they," she gestured to the photographs, "know about it either. So far all that's happened to them is a bit of shadowing. With the 'Shifters it could be because they're not sure. The markings on the fur are so faint you see, if you're not looking you don't really see it."

Shikamaru made some affirmative noise. He was studying a photograph of a brown wolf running alongside a fox, something he found odd but didn't ask about. Barely discernible on the fox's left shoulder was a faint pattern.

The others in the room were watching him carefully. Sakura biting her lip again as she watched him process it, and she seemed to be waiting to see whether he'd fly off the handle again. Shizune looked a little worried, although it hardly showed under the grim determination she was wearing as a mask. Gaara's expression hadn't changed at all as he leant back against the wall by the door. Tsunade looked satisfied with events and was just waiting for him to finish thinking.

"You know, I always thought Witches were supposed to be . . . well, nasty to us Humans. Or at least not really caring."

Tsunade offered him a smile. "We just try not to get involved if we can help it. Unfortunately with this our paths crossing can't be helped. You're marked, same as Sakura, Gaara, and at least six other people. But we think there are more we haven't found yet, some of them are bound to have hidden the marks, although some, like yourself and Ino, can't hide them very well because of the placing. You can only obscure it."

He rubbed his forearm again, looking once more at Ino's photographs.

Tsunade caught the action and the look on his face and smiled gently, her tone suddenly less authoritative and more motherly. "Yes, you seem to hold the same markings. Strange really, how you make a pair. Some of the others are the same." when he looked at her she laughed. "Here, let me show you."

She took the manilla folder and started to sort through the pictures. She did this for maybe four or five minutes – there were really a lot of them – until she had several small piles of two or three laid out at the end of the bed.

When she beckoned to him he knelt and looked past her shoulder.

The first pile, near Sakura's leg, showed Ino without the mesh, bandage or anything else to hide what made her different to the people around her. Tsunade moved her photo up to reveal one of him, with the tattoo clearly on display.

The next along to the right was of Tsunade herself. She smiled when she saw his shocked expression and winked, lifting up her shirt to reveal a tattoo on her side, and underneath her photo was the image of a large white frog or toad, about the same height as Sakura, with red-brown markings on his face, a pattern of pale grey a mere shade darker than the rest of his skin appeared to be in the same place as Tsunade's. "We don't know his human form." Tsunade explained.

Next was an image of the fox, his human form clipped underneath; a tall blond with spiky hair and cerulean eyes and tanned skin. He had whisker marks on his cheeks, and the tattoo was barely hidden by the shirt's short sleeve as it curved down his upper arm. Beneath these was the pearl-eyed girl, a photo taken during a fight judging by her stance and the stances of the two either side of her – also women – and she wore a strapless top under a mesh shirt; he could just make out the same markings.

"She's a Vampire too, like the other two women. Her name's Hinata Hyuuga, the daughter of her clan-head, like Ino. They're friends, actually." she gave him a look. "Another funny thing is that all those we know of that are marked seem drawn to each other somehow."

He nodded, understanding instantly that she referred to feelings of kinship and something that ran deeper.

"We only know of one other pair. A 'Shifter and a Human." she said, gesturing to the last pile. "The man seems very cunning, as he hides it a lot with foundation or concealer. Well, he'd have to, seeing where it is. But we're surprised no one in your Caste knows about him and we're fairly sure that your scientists don't."

The top photograph was of a man in profile with brown hair in a small, spiky ponytail similar to Shikamaru's. He had a scar across the bridge of his nose. The tattoo, a small collection of curves around a central four-point star, started on his left cheek and wound its way down to the base of his neck. Beneath him was the picture of a dark violet snake, her colouring so dark that the black pattern was almost completely hidden. Her human form beneath showed a young woman with pale skin and dark violet-black hair, with the same tattoo on her left cheek.

Shikamaru sat back, deep in thought again as his mind ticked over everything that had been said. Finally he sighed. "I cant go back now, can I."

Sakura looked away, Shizune looked at the floor. Tsunade smiled softly and shook her head.

"I can see Haku and Ayame tomorrow?"

"Of course." said Tsunade.

He nodded. "Ok, I'll stay and help."

Sakura actually hugged him. Tsunade and Shizune exchanged tired but happy smiles.

"We'll leave you with Sakura and Gaara. Feel free to ask them any questions, I'm sure they'll love to answer. There aren't many other Witches that are marked, at least none their age." Tsunade nodded to them in farewell before she and Shizune left.

Sunlight slanted through the gap in the curtains and fell onto his face, waking him up. He'd had one of the best nights' sleep in a while, he realised. Though that was probably due to the drink Sakura gave him before she left; she'd told him what was in it and what it would do, not wanting to alienate him with suspicion.

She seemed genuinely happy that he was there, and it made him smile. He felt a brotherly affection for her. For Gaara there was respect as well as understanding.

The door opened slightly and there was a tap on the door before it opened fully. A young woman a few years older than him looked around the door, her hair and eyes both light brown.

"Hello? Shikamaru are you awake?" she grinned when she saw him and called back "He's up." before she walked in, followed by a young man with long dark black-brown hair and warm brown eyes.

"Ayame." Shikamaru smiled in spite of himself.

She nodded, happy to see him again. "Tsunade told us Sakura and Gaara brought you in last night." she grinned. "Now you can help us wreak havoc on the Witches."

"It is good to see you are well, Shikamaru." Haku added. "She told us that you were attacked."

The genius Human nodded. "Yeah, troublesome huh."

Ayame looked aghast. "Please tell me you're not still saying that word Shika!"

"What word?" but the grin belied the innocent confusion in his voice. He knew damn well what she meant. "And please don't tell me you're more concerned with my vocabulary than my state of health. I was attacked by a thing with great big claws and all you think to say is a lecture on my favourite word? Troublesome woman."

Haku moved between them as Ayame opened her mouth to argue back. "We've been assigned as your tour guides while you're here. Do you want to leave now?"

Shikamaru looked down at himself; he was still wearing the same clothes he'd been in when this whole troublesome mess began. "Sure," he drawled, "just let me get changed first."

A few hours later saw him walking between Haku and Ayame down a busy main street. The other two waved – Ayame's case – or smiled and nodded – Haku's – when people said hi. Shikamaru drew more than his fair share of curious stares. They led him towards a coffee shop a little over halfway down and ordered sandwiches and drinks, then sat down at a table outside in the sunshine.

"So," Ayame began, drawing Shikamaru's attention from the herb stall opposite, "I gather they told you everything last night."

Shikamaru nodded.

"And?" she seemed to be waiting for something from him.

He frowned, wondering what she wanted. "I'm staying. It's not like I can go home now, knowing that somewhere there's a madman, or a team of madmen, watching my every move and getting ready to kill me. Besides, life was becoming a drag." speaking of drags . . . he checked his right pocket; the clothes were from his house, though how they'd gotten them he had no idea and didn't want to know, and he recalled putting something in there that he wanted now. He smiled when his finger brushed a familiar corner of a box and he pulled out the packet of cigarettes and a lighter. "At least here I won't endanger Kiba and Choji or my mom and dad. I'm protected, they're protected, and I have the chance to do something about this whole mess."

Ayame frowned as he lit one and took a drag. "They've got a whole team of scholars working on this phenomenon. They've been working on it ever since they found out that other Castes were involved, and they haven't found a thing."

"Bet my IQ is higher than all of theirs together." Shikamaru said bluntly, breathing in more smoke.

Neither of his friends said anything, not because there was nothing to say – there was, just not on this subject – but because what he said was probably completely true. Sometimes having a genius for a friend was a little uncomfortable to handle.

A waiter brought their orders out and they ate in silence, each thinking. Only after did they start to talk again.

"You know," Haku began, looking at the sky, "I've just remembered a story my mother used to tell me."

"What about?" asked Ayame, curious. Her father had told her lots of stories and legends as she'd grown up and new ones always interested her.

"A group of people who bring down a tyrant. The people were from different worlds, or so my mother used to say, different worlds and different ranks and social circles. The world kept trying to split them apart and make them give up but they refused and stayed together, and in the end that was their greatest strength; their loyalty to each other. Slowly they began to convince the world that they were right and united everybody, and the tyrant fell as a result."

Shikamaru was thinking again. Ayame was frowning.

"My father told me that one too. He said there was something special about the rebels, something that marked them out from everybody el-Hey! Where are you going?"

Shikamaru threw some change from his pocket onto the table and crushed the cigarette under his foot. "To talk to Tsunade."

"What? Why? What did I say?"

"It might be nothing, but I've got to check. I'll catch you later." with that he turned and ran for the hospital, knowing that Sakura or Shizune or somebody would be working there that could take him to the Witch Princess.

He crashed through the doors, out of breath, and panted to the woman behind the reception counter. "Shizune . . . Tsunade . . . where?" when the woman told him he dashed off again without a word, running all the way to the research labs a few floors up. He didn't have the patience right now to wait for an elevator, or whatever they used besides stairs.

Tsunade was just walking out of a lab when he skidded around a corner and crashed to the floor.

"Hey kid, what's the hurry?" she looked at him in surprise as she helped him up again; he hadn't struck her as the type to move so fast.

"Idea." he gasped. Tsunade led him to a bench and poked her head through the doors of the lab again, asking for some potion for exhaustion. Soon a redhead that looked a lot like an older version of Gaara walked out and handed Shikamaru a small white cup the size of a large thimble brimming with a golden-blue liquid.

Shikamaru downed it in one, for once not bothering to ask what was in it, and began to feel better with each passing second.

"Now then, what got you in such a state kid?" Tsunade asked him again.

The lab doors opened again and Sakura, Shizune and a young man with purple facial markings joined the small group in the hall. They said nothing at Tsuande's gesture for silence, though Sakura's eyes especially were concerned.

"Do you guys have any stories about tyrants?"

The young man spoke up. "We have several, why?" They were all frowning now.

"Because Haku and Ayame just reminded me about one from our Caste and I wanted to know if you guys had one similar." he explained. He felt frustrated by their lack of reaction.

"What's the story?" asked Sakura, sitting down cross-legged in front of him.

He gave her a look. "You want to hear it?" he was surprised, even more so by her reply, which accompanied a guilty little grin.

"I've always been fascinated by folklore from other Castes."

Apparently it was news to most of the others – bar Tsunade – as well.

Shikamaru calmed down, trying to remember how Haku had said it and what his own mother had told him. "Many centuries ago, thousands of years really, there were different worlds. These worlds feared and mistrusted one another because they were all different. Then a man from one of the worlds committed a terrible evil and gained immense power."

"What was the evil he committed?" asked Shizune, as interested as the others seemed to be.

He shook his head. "Not sure, I don't think we have a story where it was named. I think the idea is that it was so terrible that it couldn't be named in case someone else tried to copy him."

Shizune nodded and he continued.

"He deceived the worlds, ruling from the shadows, and turned them against each other more than they already were. Distrust and fear became hatred, and they began to war with each other." he paused, recalling how his mother told it. "Eventually some higher beings got sick of it," he'd utterly given up trying to copy his mother's version, "and they set about trying to correct the imbalance of power. They chose individuals from the different worlds and made them different from the rest, charging them with the destiny of bringing down the tyrant and uniting the worlds. Everybody tried to separate them, turn them against each other and the idea of their mission, but they refused and stayed together. Slowly everyone began to see that they were right, and the group's loyalty was its greatest strength. They put aside their differences and brought down the tyrant, bringing peace with their victory."

Sakura was looking so shocked by now that he had to ask; "What's wrong?"

She shook her head and closed her mouth, which had been hanging open so that she resembled a fish. "Nothing, it's just that . . . Wait here, I'll be right back."

They all looked at each other, puzzled, but stayed where they were until she returned, this time with a heavy black rucksack.

"I've got more at home." she explained, dropping the bag with a heavy _thud_. "But these ones are the most direct, probably because they're more modern, the others are so old . . ." she muttered as she sorted through the books, piling them up in front of her on the floor. When she'd finished she looked at the titles and selected a thick volume about halfway down. "This is full of our Caste's fairytales and legends." she flicked through it feverishly. "Here." she showed him the page.

The story was slightly different, as one would expect considering it was from a different race, but the essential facts were the same.

She nodded when she saw he had noticed and began to flick through another. "It's in several of these books. Including . . ." she picked up another heavy tome nearer the top of her 'little' pile and turned pages. "This one." she finished triumphantly, turning the book around to display it.

"Sakura Haruno that had better not be what it looks like!" Tsunade said sternly as the redhead – during their wait Tsunade had introduced him as Sasori – took the book from Sakura and read it.

"What? What has she got?" asked Kankuro – Tsunade had introduced him too – leaning at an awkward angle to see the cover. He fell with a squawk of surprise. "That's a Vamp book!"

"Yes, it is. I found it while on an assignment and kept it. But don't you see? The Human version focuses on the heroics of the rebels, the Witches' version has a lot more morality as it actually talks more about the crime, the Vampires look more at the fighting. I'm betting there's a 'Shifter version of this story out there!" she concluded, her green eyes sparkling at the thought.

Kankuro looked shocked but still sceptic. "And the other books?"

She jumped, as though she'd forgotten all about them in her excitement. "Mythology." she said quickly, selecting another and looking for a specific page. "The Human version mentions some higher beings?" when Shikamaru nodded she grinned. "The Witches' too. I think I understand the reference. I think it means these." she turned this book around to show them the captioned drawing.

"The Celae, the fifth Caste of the world, and the keepers of balance and harmony." Tsunade read out. "I didn't know there was a fifth Caste!"

"You wouldn't," Sakura told her, "They're not really what you would call sociable. They meddle in the affairs of the other Castes. _And_ they pop up in several old legends. From all the Castes."

"I still don't get how all this fits together." moaned Kankuro. "What clued you onto this?" he asked Shikamaru.

"It was the way Ayame said it. She said the rebels were _marked_ out from the rest." he let that sink in and then looked at Tsunade. "Couldn't that mean literally rather than metaphorical?"

She nodded. "It could." she said thoughtfully. "But it's still not-"

"In the Human Caste it's always worlds. Never countries or lands. Doesn't that strike you as odd?" he pressed, interrupting her.

"Well-"

"Couldn't world be metaphor for _Caste_? Think about it, so far you have a bunch of Humans, Vampires, Witches and 'Shifters that are marked with these weird tattoos that we were all born with. We're from different cultures, different Castes. To someone from any one of those Castes wouldn't the rest seem to be other worlds?"

"But-"

"Not to mention the fact that every country, every land has at least one town or village that is controlled by one of the Castes, which would explain why the stories say worlds as well. You can't say land if the races mix. They don't have individual lands."

"Besides," Sakura chipped in, catching on, "The same story has cropped up in three of four Castes. It's bound to be in the fourth as well. And they're all so similar too. It means that they all have the same source!"

"It does seem plausible." Sasori said quietly, still flipping through the Vampire tome.

Tsunade sighed. "Alright, I'll admit it sounds convincing, to a point." she gave Sakura and Shikamaru a hard look as she continued. "However, I'm not going to believe this without a little more evidence at least. I want you two to work on this together. Sakura, you're pulled from the hospital research labs and you and Shikamaru are gonna be spending a lot more time together. In the library and archives."

Sakura grinned and Shikamaru nodded, accepting.

It looked like they had a whole lot of work to do.


	4. Revalations

**One of my friends asked me why i put up the prologue and first chapter together. In case any more of you are curious it's because with a prologue like the one that kicks off this story i didn't think it fair to leave you hanging with a load of information and not a lot of fun.**

**Thanks again to all the readers and reviewers, those that added alerts and so on. I'm getting a better reception than i dreamed of in the Naruto category and i thank you all for it. Hugs to everybody!**

**Also, i'm part of an RP site for this anime, (www. naruto-role-play. proboards. com) remove the spaces for the link. There's only me (Tenten), Temari and Sakura on there at the minute and so it's a little boring with no guys to wreak havoc on. We do/did have a Kiba too, but i'm not sure what's happening there as we haven't seen him in _forever_. So if anybody wants to join in feel free to do so!**

**Anyway, enough from me, let's get on with this gig! **

**Eb x**

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><p><strong>Chapter Three: Revelations<strong>

"And just where the hell have you been?"

Naruto flinched; Tenten might be quiet in nature, but by gods was she loud when she shouted at him.

"On assignment." Asuma replied curtly, walking past her as the two entered the village.

"Sure took your sweet time in doing it." she muttered, then, louder, "And why the hell were you two paired up? Asuma aren't you normally paired off with Kakashi?"

"Where is Jiraiya?" Asuma removed a packet from his trouser pocket and lit up a cigarette. Not only did Tenten frown, but Naruto did as well; neither teen liked this habit of Asuma's.

Tenten shrugged. "Beats me how should I know? Try the Council House or the bar, or even the local hot spring." everyone knew that if Jiraiya was at the local hot spring it wouldn't be for relaxation. "Now what took you guys so long to complete the assignment?"

Tenten was a wolf like Asuma, and one of the 'Shifter Caste's best fighters. She might have been a young woman, but gods was she deadly when you pissed her off. She had been gifted by Mother Nature with long dark hair – though she rarely wore it in any style other than her customary twin buns – and smoky brown eyes. She had a figure, but she was usually too much of a tomboy to flaunt it. She was 19, almost 20.

Asuma was 26, tall and rugged. With a habit of smoking. Across his shoulder blades was a tattoo; an intricate design of lines around a central diamond-shape that vaguely resembled wings. His skin was a dark olive and he was very well muscled.

Naruto was a fox 'Shifter. He looked innocent. At first glance. Until you noticed the mischievous smirk. Upon each cheek were three long, thin whisker-like markings; a sign both of his animal and of the being housed within. He looked slim but that apparent weakness was betrayed by the iron-like muscles in his arms and legs. And of course, his left shoulder and upper arm were marked with a tattoo. Naruto was an orphan, 18, and was the second adopted son of Jiraiya, the wolves' leader.

"None of your business Tenten." Asuma growled in warning.

She, unfortunately, was ignoring him as she pointed to both their wrists. "Oh my god are those silver burns?"

"Tenten, go find Gai or Lee and pester them instead."

"I would but they keep trying to make me wear green spandex and proclaim the youthfulness of youth." she replied sweetly, still following them.

Naruto laughed and even Asuma had to smirk.

"So what took ya?" She was walking between them now as they strolled down the main street that stretched from gate to central Council House. There were several bars along this street that Jiraiya liked to frequent, so they could kill two birds with one stone, sort of.

"You'll find out when we find Jiraiya." Asuma told her. "If you're that curious you'll just have to be patient."

They found Jiraiya just as he was walking out of the Council House.

"Ah, Asuma, Naruto, good to see you safe and well. I was just heading to the Kiri Hot Springs and-"

"Cancel it." Asuma interrupted him. "We need to talk."

Jiraiya gave him a long look, then turned his gaze to Naruto. The blond was uncharacteristically silent and serious. Slowly he nodded and turned to go back in. The trio followed him all the way to the top floor, where Jiraiya's office was. The room overlooked the 'Shifter city with a view of the main gates from which Asuma and Naruto had just come.

"Alright," he began as Tenten walked in last and shut the door behind her, "I'll bite. What went wrong?"

Tenten had sat down near a window and was looking from the two to Jiraiya worriedly.

"We were captured." Asuma said, still standing and still looking straight at Jiraiya. "By two Vampires, in the forest near the wall."

Jiraiya nodded. "And yet you stand before me almost unharmed." he voice showed that he was waiting for the real problem to be explained. "How did you escape the Midnight City?"

"With help." Asuma said, his face totally serious.

Which was just as well, for the reactions of Tenten and Jiraiya were both shock followed almost immediately by incredulity.

"You can't be serious?" Tenten exploded from her perch on the sill. "They're all Vamps in that place! How could another 'Shifter get in and -"

"It wasn't a 'Shifter." Naruto spoke, for the first time since seeing Jiraiya. The expression in his eyes and on his face made Tenten quiet immediately.

"But if it wasn't a 'Shifter, then . . ."

Asuma nodded wearily. "A Vampire." he looked like he was still coming to terms with this himself. "A female. And that's not everything. She's a Hyuuga, born and raised."

Jiraiya looked between them, the movements suddenly wary. "How old?"

Asuma made a sound between a laugh and a snort. "You expect me to accurately gouge a Vamp's age?" he sighed. "She can't have been that old, while she had that way of moving that comes with age she just didn't give off that vibe. Couldn't have been older than Naruto."

Jiraiya parked himself behind his desk and watched them both. "You two got a name for me to work with here?"

Asuma looked at Naruto, who looked back before facing his adoptive father. "Hinata Hyuuga. She said her name was Hinata."

Jiraiya went as white as his hair. "Say _what_?"

Asuma nodded grimly, Naruto looked at his feet.

From her perch on the sill Tenten spoke up hesitantly. "Who is she?"

"A Born Vampire." Jiraiya explained, sounding older than he was as he ran a hand over his face wearily. "She's the eldest daughter of Hiashi Hyuuga and the next in line, or so it would be apparent, to the clan leadership."

Tenten looked somewhere between impressed and confused, not to mention scared. "But then, why would she . . ."

"We don't know." Asuma said bluntly. "She just did."

"Actually she told us that too." when everyone turned to look at him Naruto raised his eyes from the floor to meet them. "Well, she told me at any rate. You were sleeping." he said to Asuma. "She claimed to understand how it is to feel trapped and said that she wanted to rebel against her father."

The white-haired toad sage raised an eyebrow. "Did she now? And did she happen to mention why?"

Naruto squirmed uncomfortably. She had said a lot of things, and he didn't feel exactly comfortable with telling the others what she had told him in confidence. Though try as he might he had no clue why that should be.

Finally, after much squirming and hesitation, he admitted, in a quiet voice, "She's not happy there."

Tenten looked nonplussed by this confession, and Asuma also looked confused.

Jiraiya, however, looked at his adopted son and saw a whole different story. "Tenten, Asuma, you may leave. I want to speak to Naruto in private."

They did so, albeit reluctantly.

When it was just Jiraiya and Naruto, and they were sure the other two weren't listening in, Jiraiya sighed. "What's up kid?" he asked as he sat on the corner of his desk.

"I don't know." Naruto admitted. "I'm confused as hell."

"You said she's not happy there . . . what does that mean?"

He watched the blond trying to figure that out himself so as to adequately explain it.

Haltingly, with many pauses, Naruto repeated what Hinata had told him to one of the few men he totally trusted.

By the time the blond fox had finished Jiraiya was surprised and silent for a long time. "So Hinata is not really considered a candidate for the leadership of her clan?"

Naruto shrugged. "It's the impression I got. She wants out of that place." he hesitated. "One more thing, another Vamp knows about Kyuu."

Kyuu was Naruto and Jiraiya's nickname for Kyuubi, an odd sort of spirit that had taken a liking to Naruto at a very young age and shared space in his body in exchange for one or two little benefits to Naruto. Rent, the blond called it.

"How?" silently Jiraiya added _who_ to the question.

"Not sure. She seemed able to take over minds or something." he described the ordeal he and Asuma had gone through. "It felt like I'd been shunted aside while she went through my memories. She only left when Kyuu got angry at her and shoved her out again. With Asuma she left of her own will."

"A Yamanaka without a doubt." Jiraiya said thoughtfully. "Your description seems to indicate the main Yamanaka clan and I think I might be able to work out who she is. She's strong I'll give her that. What she did to Asuma is no easy task."

He cast Naruto a sharp glance. "Why did the Hyuuga girl say so much to you?"

"I don't know." Naruto said simply, but he sounded miserable. Jiraiya said nothing and waited for him to say what was on his mind. He did, eventually. "I don't want to just leave her there. She helped us, can't we help her?"

Jiraia scratched his head for a minute before replying. "Our culture dictates that we owe her, a life for a life, in this case two favours are owed." he sighed. "But she's a Vampire, not 'Shifter. It's tricky, and I doubt there are other 'Shifters who would agree to kidnap her, which is exactly what we would be doing regardless, let alone allow her to stay here."

"Can't we do something though?" Naruto was almost pleading. "I don't want to just leave her there after everything she did for us. She could be killed because of us. Because of me."

Jiraiya gave him a long look. He knew what that statement meant, even if Naruto didn't understand it yet himself. "I'll call a favour with a Created that still has loyalties to the 'Shifter Caste." he said finally. "No promises, but I'll see if I can't contact her. Don't ask me why but I'm intrigued, I'll admit that much."

The grin that made its appearance on Naruto's face would make anybody think he'd just been given the best news of his young life. "Thank you, Pervy sage."

"And no calling me that for at least a week!" Jiraiya shouted after him as the kid tore out of there like a whirlwind. Shaking his head in despair and amusement, Jiraiya opened a folder on the shelf behind him and flicked through it.

"Ren!" when said girl looked around his door he continued. "I want a message sent to one Keitaro Kaioh, a Created in connection to the Hyuuga clan. Tell him I'm calling in a favour and he's to meet me in a day's time at this spot," he pointed to the map on the wall, "and that if he's not there then I'll whip his sorry ass!"

"Right away sir."

* * *

><p>Keitaro Kaioh walked back through the gates into the Midnight City still a little bewildered from his meeting with an old friend. Why he had been asked to act as a go-between for Jiraiya he'd never understand, or so he'd stated before finding out who the recipient of this first message actually was. He ran a hand over his face in agitation. This would not be easy.<p>

Debating whether to get there quickly ,and so get this harrowing experience over with, or to dawdle and delay the inevitable that little bit longer, he settled instead for a mid-point between the two. By the time he reached the entrance to the Hyuuga Compound sweat was beading on his forehead, and he wiped it away irritably.

Nodding to the guards on either side he proceeded through and steeled himself for the ordeal ahead. Just because it was the middle of the night didn't make this task any easier.

His target was in her room, and he gained admittance on the pretext of carrying a message from a friend. A message he did indeed have for her; whether she'd see it as from a friend or not he had no idea.

"Lady Hinata?" it came out as a strange, raspy squeak and he cleared his throat. "Lady Hinata."

"Yes?" she was on the balcony and her delicate, pale hand swept the sheer curtain aside as she looked at him expectantly.

"I bring news of a friend to you." he explained, bowing low as was right. He had no way of knowing whether somebody was eavesdropping and so he would have to be as discreet as possible; it would be suspicious if he were heard asking her to check.

"Which friend?" she asked. "Ino?"

Keitaro shook his head. "A different friend, Lady Hinata. One you helped a few days ago." he hoped that wasn't too obvious; she was already in trouble with her father and under suspicion for the escape he spoke of. That she was in fact guilty of it was beside the point.

She obviously understood for her eyes widened a fraction. "Come stand with me, and tell me how Naru is doing in her new home."

Keitaro obliged. She scanned the surroundings with her eyes, looking for others. Finally she seemed satisfied and turned to him. "I trust the news is good?"

"Yes," he explained, "My source told me that they returned no worse than when they had left you."

"Your source?" she raised an eyebrow. "Are you a spy?"

He flushed slightly. "Not exactly, my Lady. Before I became what I am I was a wolf, and so I have some measure of loyalty still to my old Caste." he hesitated. "I bring messages to you from an old friend of mine."

"Continue, please." she was intrigued; that among the Created there were loyalties other than those to the Vampire Caste she had never realised nor dreamed. She had merely taken them for granted. An error she now realised was a fatal mistake that could have dire consequences.

Keitaro nodded and shifted from foot to foot for a moment before he spoke again. "Naru and Suma send their thanks, a hello and hope you are well and safe. Naru especially. Rai asks that you clear something up for him as he doesn't quite understand."

"And what is that?"

Keitaro paused, uncertain. "Why are you unhappy?"

Hinata didn't speak for several minutes. The question had surprised her, and she realised now that she had said too much when Naruto was caged here and that perhaps she had made a grave mistake in doing so. She gave a slightly cryptic answer, partly because of the prospect of being overheard but also because she felt slightly hurt that the fox had betrayed her confidences. "Doesn't every creature wish for freedom from oppression?"

Keitaro gave her a look. "Is that your answer?"

"It is." she paused and then added, somewhat testily. "I have no desire to be used against my family or my Caste."

"Of course not." Keitaro spluttered as quietly as he could. "Rai was merely asking. He thinks you are . . . intriguing."

She raised an eyebrow. "In what way?"

"You helped them."

Hinata thought that over for a moment. "Is that all?"

He looked incredulous. "Isn't that enough?"

She shrugged so he tried a different track instead. "Why do you feel oppressed?"

The young woman gave a humourless laugh that he didn't think quite fit her. "What am I." it was said as a statement, not query. It told him a lot about her feelings.

"And you wish for freedom?"

"Among other things, yes." she sighed and he saw her sadness then. "But I could never do that to my family and friends. It would hurt them terribly."

"Are there perhaps others who feel the same?"

She looked at him. "I don't know."

Keitaro nodded. "I shall pass on your reply, Lady Hinata. I am to be your go-between." he murmured in her ear as he left. She watched him leave with an odd sense of excitement.

She didn't feel so restless any more.

She felt she were finally moving.

And now the world would wait instead.

* * *

><p>Shikamaru looked up as Tsunade walked into the room.<p>

He and Sakura had started with her own collection of tomes and books, and there were quite a few. Thus an entire two days had been spent in the kitchen of the house she lived in with Tsunade and Shizune, with Sakura going over the ones in the old Witch tongue.

"Is everything ok, Tsunade?" Sakura asked as she looked over the topmost edge of a very large, dusty, brown leather-bound volume. She was wearing glasses. This had raised an eyebrow from Shikamaru, so she had explained that when she was little she had needed them, but the habit had stuck despite her growing out of them.

"I'm not sure." she poured a clear liquid into a very small cup and downed it in one. "One of the other Castes is taking action."

"Of war?" Sakura sounded shocked, which Shikamaru could understand easily; the last outright Caste War had been over a century ago and had resulted in hundreds if not thousands of deaths. The Human Caste had suffered more losses than any that time.

Tsunade frowned as she poured more from the bottle. "I'm not sure." she admitted slowly. "A Created is believed to have met up with a 'Shifter."

Shikamaru's eyebrows nearly met his hairline. "Say that again?"

"I know, it is a little strange." Tsunade conceded; she had grown used to the new addition to her household in the short time he'd been in the city. "We know that the Created tend to retain loyalty to whichever Caste they come from; it's one way we've managed to gain so much information about the marked in the Vampire Caste. We think this one was once 'Shifter, probably a wolf too." She frowned. "I'm not sure if it bodes good or not."

Shikamaru looked at Sakura, Sakura looked at Shikamaru. Neither knew what to make of it either.

* * *

><p>"Master Jiraiya, a message for you."<p>

The white-haired man looked up from his paperwork and blinked. "A message?"

"Yes sir," Ren nodded, "from Kaioh. It was sent by hawk. A normal hawk." she added hastily. She meant a non-Shifter.

"From . . ." the full weight of her words hit him and he scrambled from behind the desk. "Thanks, you can go now." He smiled as he took the envelope.

Once he was alone he went back to his desk and sat on the corner.

The message was simple; only a few lines, and he suspected that some were direct and indirect quotes.

_Salutations, Lavender blue._

_Doesn't every creature wish for freedom from oppression? _

_Especially a bird in a gilded cage._

_Perhaps many birds in a cage can escape together?_

_A puzzle to be sure._

"Well I'll be." he muttered to himself. "The old sod did it." He strode over to his office door and threw it open. "Ren I want Naruto and Asuma sent here immediately. No ifs, buts or maybes just do it." he closed it again as she opened her mouth to question.

"_Lavender blue_? Ah, I get it, must mean she's well and safe. And she says hello." he mumbled, figuring out the code. Danzou had never been one to use fancy codes and so this was relatively easy to unravel. The next two lines were easy, so obvious it was almost painful. "Perhaps many . . . he must mean there could be others like her. It's a possibility. And they could get out together, yes, that would make things simple."

Jiraiya frowned at the last line; _A puzzle to be sure_ . . . "Maybe . . ." he was interrupted by the door flying open with a shout of "Hey Pervy Sage!"

"I thought I told you to stop shouting that." he half-snapped.

Naruto shrugged. "Sorry."

Jiraiya ground out a frustrated sigh and thrust the paper under the blond's nose. "Read that."

The almost-order was obeyed.

"What is it?" asked Asuma curiously, looking over Naruto's shoulder.

"A message from a contact." Jiraiya said eventually. "I asked him to get in touch with this Vampire that helped you. He agreed and this is the result."

"Reads like gibberish."

"He used a simple code. Kinda looks like a poem to me." Jiraiya added. "I think that was the effect he was going for, a nonsense rhyme. Though it hardly rhymes."

"She's _Lavender_, isn't she."

Jiraiya looked at Naruto for a long minute. "What makes you say that kid?"

"Her eyes, they're a pale sort of lavender colour." Naruto's face was perfectly serious.

The other two men studied him, one calmly and the other with a degree of shock.

"Yes," Jiraiya explained at last. "Lavender is the code he used for the girl. Lavender blue means she is safe and well. The greeting is from them both. The next two lines are so obvious I'm not even going to bother telling you." He waited until Asuma had scanned those lines and raised an eyebrow before continuing. "The second to last means that there may be more than just she who feel that way, and if they can find them we'd be better off bringing them all out together. The last line means he's going to investigate further."

Naruto didn't bother hiding his joy at the message. "So what's the plan, Pervy Sage?"

A vein in Jiraiya's head began to tick but he didn't comment. "Nothing, for the moment. I'll send a response back to the contact and he'll probably keep an eye on her as well as investigate."

This slightly deflated Naruto's mood, but only a very little.

"So you're definitely going to be breaking her, and possibly a handful of others, out of that city?" Asuma's tone didn't commit him to anything.

Jiraiya nodded.

* * *

><p>"Hinata!"<p>

The young woman looked over at her friend's shout. Ino was waving at her from outside one of the gates to the parkland.

"You're feeling better?" Hinata said when she walked over.

The blonde nodded. "Yeah, it was a bit of a shock to the system. The Clan medic had to get rid of rogue chakra." she referred to the energy it took to use abilities. "It's a shame that those two escaped." she added as an after-thought. "Dad was looking forward to experimenting on the fox."

Hinata shuddered.

"You ok?" the blonde sounded concerned.

"Yes, i'm fine." Hinata smiled at her. Ino didn't look entirely convinced, but she let it drop.

They walked in silence for a few minutes, admiring the scenery in the parkland. Spring was in its first flush, and the trees were still patchy with greenery. Overall it was a content, refreshing image.

"Ino," Hinata began slowly.

The blonde looked at her. "Yes?"

"What are your plans for the future?"

There was another few minutes of silence as the young blonde thought it over. "I'm not sure." she admitted at length. "Deidera is taking over when father retires, we all decided that he would be the successor, and I didn't want to be the head of the Clan." she sighed and stopped walking, looking up at the sky. "I suppose . . ." she bit her lip, eyes dulling slightly before they suddenly brightened and looked at Hinata. "What about you? All set to become the Lady of the Hyuuga?" she winked.

Hinata smiled sadly. "No."

Ino blinked. "Come again?"

"I'm not the next in line for the clan-head-ship. My sister, Hanabi, is."

Ino stared at her. "Hinata, i'm . . . i'm sorry I . . ."

"It doesn't matter." Hinata told her. "I didn't want you to know, or worry. I'm sorry for not telling you sooner."

"How long have you known?"

"A few years now."

They lapsed back into silence again, each considering both their own and the other's prospects. Finally one of them broke the peace.

"Come with me, Hinata."

Lavender met sky blue. "What do you mean?"

"We've got it sorted. Deidera and I already made plans for me to get away from here, to travel, so that I wouldn't get married off to some noble as a trophy, but my father has already begun lining up suitors. I'll bet yours has too." Hinata's silence was her confirmation and Ino nodded. "Come with me. We'll leave sooner."

Hinata was shocked to say the least. "But my family, Neji will have to come after me, and what about Hanabi?"

"She can look after herself. Besides, it'd do your cousin some good to get out of the city. Who knows, maybe we can persuade him to come along for the ride. After all we know he's not exactly happy." she winked. "Come on Hina, i'd feel a lot better if you were with me. And I don't like the idea of you becoming some uptight noble's bride and trophy."

Hinata sighed. "I worried I might be alone in my feelings."

Ino grinned. "Well, you're not. So how about it? Just us two, freedom within our grasp, the wide open road." she swung her arms out and twirled. "It'll be fun. And neither of us is exactly incapable of looking after ourselves. And who knows, maybe this will prove to your father that you're not the weak girl the clan believes you to be."

Ino's words struck deep. It was true. The Hyuuga Clan considered Hinata a weak link in the chain.

A blossom drifted across her vision and both girls turned to watch it descend to the earth. Hinata decided that it was symbolic somehow.

Out of sight, up in a tree nearby, Keitaro smiled. He had managed to get assigned as Lady Hinata's bodyguard that day and had opted to remain hidden. Just as well; he severely doubted that this conversation would have occurred if either girl had known of his presence.

He already had some information to return to his old friend with, and this simply made it that tiny bit easier. Where there was one dissenter, there were bound to be more. When these two fled the confines of their cage, others would undoubtedly follow.

He had also noticed the marks both girls bore, and his eyebrows raised with interest.

The story had just gotten more interesting.


	5. The Storm Clouds Gather

**Hey guys! I'm back again! I've tried to do them justice once more and i hope i've managed! Thanks for the awesome reviews! This chapter comes to you hot from my proof-reader, my darling boyfriend, who is a little like Kakashi in a lot of ways except colouring. Ruka-onee, i hope you like the scene i've put in for you; you'll know it when you read it. But anyway, i present the fourth chapter (fifth including the info-overload prologue) of _Intertwined_. **

**I'm also glad that many of you don't think this is another Twilight-esque story; i hate those books with an absolute passion so that is a compliment i shall readily lap up with a smile. seriously though, it must be because i'm a literature student or something because i seriously don't think the woman can write. Decent ideas, mostly, but poor execution. Just my opinion, one that is widely shared i'm sure, but props to those of you who can put up with those "books".**

**I'm sorry, vamps do NOT sparkle. *shudders***

**Please let me know what you think, i can't wait to hear from you all! ;)**

**Eb x**

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><p><strong>Chapter Four: The Storm Clouds Gather . . .<strong>

Hidden beneath dark travelling cloaks and both wearing dark mission clothes, Ino and Hinata met a street away from the same tunnel through which Naruto and Asuma had made their escape a couple of weeks earlier, in the same spot where Hinata had said goodbye to the two unlikely allies.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Hina?" Ino sounded wary, not that her friend could blame her; what they were doing could be considered dangerous.

"We both know we have to do this." Hinata reminded her. Both had felt a feeling over the last two weeks, during their preparations, that had only gotten stronger as this day dawned closer. The feeling that there was somewhere they had to be, at a certain time. Something was pushing them.

And circumstances backed up the feeling; both girls had been approached by their fathers to formally consider marriage.

"As far as my family know, I'm travelling part of the way with you to visit friends and family in a village some way to the west." Hinata added. "I told them I'd return within a month or two. It'll give us a few weeks leeway, at best." she didn't need to add that her clan would call up these relatives to simply check up on her; they both knew it would happen and Ino had accepted long ago that they would have limited time to make a decent head start.

"I still don't get why you won't tell me where we're going." Ino complained quietly as they entered the tunnel. "You say you know exactly where to go but you won't tell me."

"You'll just have to trust me." they had stopped in the middle of this tunnel, waiting for the patrol overhead to pass by and the one on the other end of the tunnel to move on. "I'm sorry, I know it's not fair, but I can't tell you. You'd stop me if I did and turn back."

"Are you certain of this?" Ino hissed. They were creeping closer to the exit now, moving furtively, with the catlike grace and fluidity that was typical of their species.

"No." Hinata breathed. "And I'm scared to all hell. But I will. I was promised help, and I have to try."

Ino looked at her for several very long minutes, time where not even their breathing could be heard, her cornflower blue eyes unreadable. Neither risked the use of their traits, for the power it would take might alert the patrols.

Then, in a flash and a swish of dark material, they were out and flitted quickly to the shadows of the trees.

Both paused, checking that no one had followed, then they ran again for half an hour more, using their highest speed. Finally they stopped, listening carefully, then they grinned at each other.

"Crazy as it sounds, I'm gonna trust you Hina." Ino told her, blue eyes laughing. "It feels too right to argue." Then she took her friend's hands in hers and whispered "We're free."

Lavender orbs widened as they took in the meaning of those two simple words. Then, with a grin and a quiet laugh, both ran off again, making the most of whatever time they had before the chase began.

* * *

><p>"I told you," Keitaro was irritated, "I know they're planning to leave, I just don't know when. I haven't been able to get Lady Hinata alone long enough to find out and Lady Yamanaka doesn't know about me yet."<p>

Jiraiya still didn't know the name of the girl that had raided Asuma and Naruto's minds, the same girl who was escaping the Midnight City with Hinata, and Keitaro certainly wasn't going to give her away. While this irritated the toad sage, he didn't begrudge his old friend the secret; it told him that the young woman was important and high-ranking enough to warrant the discretion.

Jiraiya sighed. "At least we know something." he gave the Created Vampire a look. "You're fond of them, old friend." he said at last.

"I make no secret of it, Jiraiya. And the Lady Yamanaka deserves to remain a shadow for now."

"Come on, you've got to give me _something_." Jiraiya whined. "Just one thing?"

Keitaro gave him a weary and slightly disgusted look. "How you got to be the leader of the Council of 'Shifters with _that_ attitude is beyond me."

"I charmed them all with my winning personality and handsome good looks." Jiraiya replied instantly. "Just one thing. Nothing particular just one thing."

Keitaro snorted but was quiet for a minute after. Finally he sighed and looked pensively at the water of the lake beside them. "Both are Marked."

He was rewarded when Jiraiya's mouth flopped open like a fish. "Say _what_?" he hissed. But another noise distracted them both. It sounded almost like somebody had stumbled into a tree.

Both were instantly on guard, Keitaro trying to look more wolfy than vampy. "Who's there?" his fierce tone commanded the person to reveal themselves.

After a few tense, silent moments, during which even the wind and the forest seemed to stop breathing and wait with them, a sandy-haired wildcat padded stealthily out of the bushes.

Both men tasted the air and scowled.

"Huh, you are no 'Shifter, kitten," Jiraiya warily said to the feline, "But you sure as hell ain't no normal animal either. We've all something to hide here, why not let the guise drop?"

Keitaro darted him a look, but then the cat shimmered and he dropped into a defensive crouch, a feline hiss already on his lips. In her place stood an average-height but well-built young woman of about 19, with sandy blonde hair in four short, spiky ponytails on her head and teal-coloured eyes that were at once teasing and commanding. She exuded arrogance and power, and she definitely knew that.

"A Witch." Keitaro breathed.

"How did you take that form Witch? You don't smell like you have 'Shifter blood in your family tree." Jiraiya didn't mention that that was practically impossible thanks to the wars between Castes.

"Spell skin." she shrugged, seeming to have no problem with admitting her trick.

Her easy co-operation made Jiraiya a trifle uneasy. "And why would a Witch have interest in us?"

"Why call me a pet name instead of killing me as soon as you realised I was there?" she fired back. When the two men just stared back at her she sighed. "Your previous meeting came to our attention through a source, we wanted to know why you met." she mentally gritted her teeth and growled; damn Tsunade for ordering her to be truthful if she was caught.

But she didn't allow the thought to form any clearer or further; she knew how thoughts tended to manifest into actions and events and that wishing ill to her leader wasn't a great life choice to make. She'd rather wait until she found someone that made the karmic backlash worthwhile.

Her admission caused raised eyebrows. "What source?" they weren't surprised when she said nothing and so Jiraiya tried a different track. "You gave yourself away when we mentioned that two people were Marked." he put slight emphasis on the last word, but didn't say anything specific about the two in question, just in case she hadn't heard that titbit. "Why?"

"I stumbled." she shrugged again, back to casual nonchalance. "It's not a topic you hear in everyday conversation and it caught me off-guard."

That meant that she knew exactly what the term meant. Not that it was a secret mind you; most everybody knew that a few individuals were marked with tattoos since birth and before.

"Are you marked?" Keitaro asked her.

The teal eyes were impassive but also honest when she said bluntly "No, and I don't envy those that bear the curse."

"Odd phrasing." Keitaro remarked dryly.

"But an honest one." Jiraiya added thoughtfully. "Why are you being so helpful?"

"Because I was told to be." Temari said simply. Then she turned her head slightly aside, as though listening. Jiraiya and Keitaro made out the form of a small blue and white slug on her shoulder.

With a sigh, those fierce teal eyes met their own eyes once more. "We have a proposition for you."

"We?" Keitaro snorted.

She nodded. "You agree to something, and we'll grant you a boon as proof that it isn't a trap."

"A boon?"

"A favour." She elaborated, looking at the Vampire with fathomless eyes.

"I know what a boon is!"

Jiraiya silenced Keitaro with a hand. "What are your terms?"

Temari smirked. "You meet us in a few weeks at a certain location, time and date, and promise no harm shall befall us." when Jiraiya opened his mouth she added "We'll send the details later via Katsuya." her head jerked towards the slug on her shoulder.

Not wanting to ask how a slug would send a letter – snail-mail? Slime-o-gram? - Jiraiya nodded. "Agreed. What is the boon?"

Temari's smirk broadened into a grin. "You might want to return to your village asap. Two little birds are about to fly in and you might need to smooth things over so they don't get killed on sight."

Her words left them in no doubt that she knew both who they had been talking about prior to realising that they had an audience, and about Keitaro's nonsense-rhyme message of a couple of weeks earlier.

"Wait," Jiraiya asked suddenly as she seemed to pull something over her head and she shimmered into a sandy-haired wildcat again. "Why the interest? Why the meeting?"

The cat looked at him with luminous teal eyes before she fled into the night again.

"My leader is marked."

* * *

><p>When they arrived in her office some hours later, Tsunade was not alone. Standing in front of her desk was a young woman their own age.<p>

"Come in, I have news." Tsunade beckoned them in, her eyes smiling. "Shikamaru, this is Temari Sabaku, Gaara and Kankuro's older sister. You haven't had the chance to meet her yet because she was on an assignment for me."

"Not to mention you sent me out on a new one almost as soon as I stepped through your door to report in." Temari's expression was one of irritation with her leader, but her eyes and tone of voice revealed the humour of her words and respect she felt for the Witch Princess.

"Indeed." Tsunade nodded and waited until Sakura, Shikamaru, Gaara, Ayame and Haku were seated before continuing. "As you know, we got wind of a 'Shifter meeting up with a Created Vampire a few weeks ago. Temari was trailing the 'shifter, who we now know to be Jiraiya, the head of the Council of 'Shifters."

Sakura's eyes widened. "Why would he meet with a Vampire?"

Tsunade looked to Temari, who cleared her throat and faced the newcomers.

"They were discussing two Vampires who are leaving the Midnight City. These two are heading to Iwa, the 'Shifters' capital. Our source has already informed us of their identities and told us when they left the City a little over twelve hours ago. I do not know why these two are of particular importance to the 'Shifter Caste except for a couple of things." she sighed and met the eyes of others her age, suddenly looking tired. "Both of these Vampires are Born, daughters of their respective clan heads, no less. And both are Marked."

The tension in the room that those words caused was palpable.

"What are the names of the two Vampires?" Sakura asked.

Temari looked at Tsunade, who sighed and suddenly she physically looked her age in mortal, human years – 50 or 60. "Hinata Hyuuga, eldest daughter of Hiashi, the Head of the Hyuuga Clan, and Ino Yamanaka, the daughter of the Head of the Yamanaka Clan, Inoichi."

Shikamaru suddenly felt a chill. "But if they head into the 'Shifters' territory they'll be killed!" he whispered, but they all heard him. His heart was beating so hard he thought it would burst at the mere thought of this scenario.

"Not exactly." Tsunade licked her lips. "These two have a secret ace up their sleeves that might just save their lives." she reached into a drawer beside her and pulled out a familiar manilla folder, removing four photos from the collection. "A couple of weeks ago, two 'Shifters were captured by Vampires and taken into the City to be held until the orders came for execution, experimentation, whatever the Vampire Elders wanted to do with them, poor things."

The photos showed the orange-gold fox that Shikamaru remembered seeing before, when he was still in the infirmary room, and the other a brown wolf that he also remembered from that same discussion. But this time both were accompanied by human forms, and the brown wolf's was a man in his twenties with spiky brown hair and laughing brown eyes and tanned skin, heavily muscled. He had a cigarette in his mouth and was smirking.

"Yes, he knew that was being taken and looked straight at the camera. It shook Temari up a little bit. Before tailing Jiraiya, she was tailing him. His name is Asuma Sarutobi, son of the leader of Suna, another 'Shifter city that is inhabited by wolves alone. He has a nephew, also a wolf, and lives in Iwa. The boy's name is Naruto Uzumaki, a fox that has been an orphan for several years now. His parents are missing and nobody's quite sure what happened to them, though they are presumed dead. Naruto is in Jiraiya's care. But to get back to our story."

She shifted the folder to one side and stood, walking over to a window and looking at the streets below. "These two were captured by Vampires, two of the Vamps' most talented no less, and yet they escaped the city unharmed but for the silver burns from their chains to show for it."

"Do you know how?" Shikamaru asked her. He knew that no one escaped the Midnight City; his cousin had been taken there and she had never been seen again.

"Yes," the witch looked at him and then turned back to the folder. "They had help. From Hinata Hyuuga. For reasons as yet unknown to us, and at great risk to herself, she freed them and escorted them to an escape route out of the Midnight City, formally known as Yamitsuki."

The revelation caused gasps around the room; even Temari had not known this fact.

"But how do you know all this?" Ayame's eyes were wide; the others looked much the same.

"Our source. The Created tend to retain loyalty, to some degree, to whichever Caste they came from. This source was once a witch, the last of her family, and when she was taken her House died out and has never revived. It's not likely to either, as the Created cannot reproduce." Tsunade said simply. "As you can understand, I cannot reveal the name of this Vampire."

They all nodded with varying degrees of annoyance, worry or indifference.

"I am going to set up a meeting with them." Tsunade informed them bluntly. "I want some of you to come with me."

There was total silence.

"You expect us to walk into a room full of 'Shifters and _survive_?" Ayame finally managed to stutter out.

"Some of you, yes." Tsunade was perfectly serious, and it made Ayame nervous.

Shikamaru stood up, stared her straight in the eye, and announced "I volunteer."

Ignoring the shocked gasps and sayings of the rest, she raised a hand to quiet them. When they had settled down, and she saw that Shikamaru had not moved at all since he had spoken but was waiting for her to confirm or deny, she smiled somewhat dryly. "I suspected you would, Shikamaru." her gold-brown eyes darted to his mark. "You have my thanks. You may come with me."

He nodded and walked over to the window and began to stare up at the sky.

"Anyone else? Or do I have to start volunteering people myself?" she said loudly.

One by one the following shook off their shock or wariness; Shizune, Sakura and Gaara all nodded and stood. Temari watched them with interest before returning her eyes to her leader and nodding; her own commitment had been noted prior to the others' arrival so this was mere formality.

Tsunade smiled. "Very good. I just have one more person to recruit to this little mission, for safety purposes at least." she turned to Shizune and her eyes were playful. "Shizune, be a sweetheart and find Ibiki for me will you?"

* * *

><p>Hinata and Ino broke camp and continued on almost immediately. It had been a couple of days' travelling already and the two girls were aware that their time was slowly but surely running out. The fact that they were Vampires and required little to no rest helped, but continuing on and on for days at a time was liable to make them irritable.<p>

The only reason that Yamitsuki had remained standing so long, and its inhabitants alive so long, was that everybody made sure to rest at least every now and then. Vampires were generally territorial and proud creatures; regular rest and feeding was essential if so many were to live in such close proximity in order to keep flaring tempers down.

Ino watched Hinata as they put even more distance between them and their former home. The Hyuuga girl had been quiet for most of the journey so far, which was typical of her nature. But it wasn't typical for her eyes to be so narrowed with worry, fear, and something else that Ino couldn't quite define. She was worried about her friend.

Another thing that worried her was the truth of their destination. Hinata hadn't told her where they were headed, only that Ino needed to trust her on this. Ino did trust Hinata, but that didn't mean she would trust whoever they were running to completely.

"Hina," Ino bit her lip; she had opened her mouth to speak before thinking.

Hinata turned pale lavender eyes on her curiously. They hadn't spoken since last night.

"Hina, you know I trust you, but . . . I need to know where we're going."

The indigo-haired Vampire faced forwards again. "I told you, to friends of mine."

"Yes, but _where_?"

Hinata slowed to a halt and Ino followed suit, not taking her cornflower-blue eyes off her friend's face. "If I tell you, you'll turn back."

"It can't be that bad." when Hinata only bit her lip Ino sighed and sat down on a boulder. "Alright then, I promise not to turn tail like a frightened little bunny-rabbit." she folded her arms and waited, delicate brows raised.

Fidgeting, Hinata met her eyes squarely for a minute before dropping them. "We're going Iwa." she said quietly.

The effect on Ino was profound. The blonde's jaw fell wide open and her pretty blue eyes bugged out. "We're _what_?"

"Keep it down!" Hinata said hastily at her friend's shriek; there was no guarantee that they hadn't already been tailed by someone.

"You had better have a very, _very_ good explanation for this Hinata Hyuuga!" Ino hissed. "Walking into Iwa for us will be like being run through with a white ash spear! I daresay we'll get punctured by one of the damn things as soon as we get within reach of arrows."

"We won't." the two words were said quietly, but the strength of conviction and the sheer belief they contained made Ino pause and study Hinata carefully.

"Come again?"

"I have friends in that city."

To say Ino felt shocked could be considered the understatement of any century. "H-how did you manage that? You mean you have spies?"

"No, I have f-friends." Hinata was feeling very worried now, and it showed in her speech; when worried, scared, shy or embarrassed, Hinata had the unfortunate habit of stuttering. Usually she could hide it, a feat that had taken years of speech therapy, but among friends . . .

"Friends." Ino said the word very absently. "You have friends in the 'Shifter Caste." when Hinata nodded Ino threw her hands in the air. "How on Earth did you manage that? How did you . . . wait," she paused and then it hit her so hard she nearly fell off her boulder. "Ohmygod! The fox! You really _did_ free those two! You did didn't you!"

Hinata nodded guiltily.

"Ohmygod you did? No wonder they got out without being seen! You took them through that tunnel!"

With a small but proud smile, Hinata replied, "I couldn't let them die. For some reason I couldn't just leave them to whatever the council wished. I had to get them out, so I did. The 'Shifter way is a life for a life."

"And just how do you know that?"

Hinata shifted again, uncomfortable. "My actions brought attention to me. A Created approached me on behalf of another 'Shifter." she looked at Ino. "Did you know the Created retain Caste loyalty?"

Ino's shocked eyes said she hadn't. "Ok, fearless leader, lead on. I will follow you through the gates of hell, for surely that is were we're headed." she said, both distantly and dramatically. Hinata rolled her eyes with a small giggle and then they were off again.

Proudly, Ino watched her friend as they flitted through the forest that surrounded them. She and the others had been pestering Hinata for years now to grow a backbone when it came to her father. True, she wasn't officially recognised as being the perpetrator of those actions, but _damn_ . . .

When Hinata rebelled, Ino decided, the girl did it in _style_.

A thought occurred to her suddenly, and her eyes grew wider with worry and a measure of fear. "Hina, if it's a life for a life then . . ."

"Usually, you would be correct." Hinata interrupted her before the thought could form further. "In normal circumstances it is one life for another. But I saved them both." The lavender eyes turned to cast a sideways glance and a smile at the blonde. "Two lives are owed, and two lives shall be collected. The only worry is whether they will allow it to apply to us, but," she paused and her eyes softened, "He promised that it would."

Staring slightly, Ino could only nod. Just what had come over her friend?

The rest of the forest was traversed in silence; neither girl being in a mood to talk for whatever reasons. When they broke out of the line of trees and hit clear grassy plains, dotted with boulders and stone outcroppings, Ino near sighed with sheer relief.

She hated not being able to see the sky.

She only just realised that Hinata had stopped dead in her tracks when the blond almost ran straight into the still girl's back.

The protest died on her lips when she followed the lavender gaze.

_'Ohmygod! What **is** that thing?'_

It stood at about eight feet tall, scaly and just plain ugly. It was a venomous black-green colour, with teeth as long as her forearm and twice as sharp as her own fangs! The long, reptilian tail ended in a cluster of vicious-looking spikes, mimicked by the spines running along the ridge on its back. It's arms were tiny by comparison, with one long, evil-looking claw in the middle of some smaller ones on each hand. It was staring straight at them and it hissed in a way that was almost a snarl and had every hair on the girls' bodies standing on end.

_'No amount of paper bags will make __**that**__ thing look any better.'_ Ino thought decisively, nodding along with her thoughts. She eyed the two long claws warily as she ran her tongue over her lips."Hinata, what the heck are we gonna do?" she hissed, barely moving her lips.

The thing hissed at them again and shifted position.

"I-i have no clue." Hinata hissed back. "I've never even seen anything like it before."

"Well, we've gotta do something. I dare'n't use my bloodline on _that_."

She felt a slight spike of power and realised that Hinata must be tapping in to her own bloodline. But when the thing hissed harsher and crouched slightly the charge in the air abruptly lowered.

"I dare not use my own." she hissed back. The creature took a step towards them and both took a reflexive step back. "It's sensitive to chakra, it will attack before I can activate the Byakugan."

"So now what?" Ino did not relish the idea of going up against it hand-to-hand.

"The trees."

Ino didn't have time to consider her friend's words before Hinata suddenly turned and leapt back into a tree and began skirting the immediate area. The creature let out an ungodly roar and Ino also leapt for the nearest tree as it came crashing towards them.

But it was a tactic that would only work for so long; they had to stay on the edge to keep the tangent in their course to a minimum, and the trees would only go so far in the right direction. And they were running out of trees.

Together they burst out of the tree-line and streaked across the open land.

Behind them, the creature was getting frustrated. Why did they have to run so fast? It was only following orders. And if it didn't succeed then its master would kill it. Pushing harder, the distance between it and it's quarry lessened little by little, inch by inch.

It's tail whipped with anticipation and a wicked gleam entered it's eye.

Something told the girls to roll forwards at the last second and they did so, fully in the grip of their instincts. Claws grazed the air a hair's width behind them as they tumbled and darted either way as the creature, over-balanced by it's lunge, fell forward with a vaguely startled growl. They shared a brief, measuring look before casting eyes back to their attacker, watching as it shook it's head and rose from the ground again in a crouch, a feral snarl darkening every feature.

The sickly yellow eyes, slitted like a snake's, flickered between the two girls calculatingly. Which one? If it went for one, the other would flee, so no matter which one it chose, one would get away. It hoped that the master would not be too displeased by this; one, it reasoned in its snaky mind, was better than none. The darker one with the pale eyes was smallest and probably weaker, but the lighter one with the long hair was annoying. Would the master care which one?

Hinata and Ino both felt uneasy at the creature's pause as it sniffed the air in each of their directions, tasting. Why wasn't it attacking? What was it doing? Ino grit her teeth while Hinata's face remained as blank as possible, though her eyes burned with frustration and worry. Both sorely wanted to know where this thing had come from, but they were questions better asked later than that moment. They shared another glance.

The creature leapt at Hinata.

Time seemed to slow down to a torturous pace for Ino as she watched the thing lunge. They had been distracted for a second. No more, no less. Distracted while trying to communicate some sort of plan to each other silently. But, as they had always been taught, a battle needed only a second to give a victory either way. She shouted her friend's name and began to move towards her, hoping to get there before this monster and push her out of harms way, and then a clawed hand was snaking its way at her torso and she couldn't check her momentum enough to stop.

Something large and grey blurred from the corner of her eye and hit the thing side-on.

Ino took a trembling step back as she watched the grey blur and the creature tumble away. The snarls and hissing she already knew were mixed with deeper growls and snarls, and she could hear the snapping of teeth and the tearing of flesh. More large things rushed past her as she ran to Hinata and held her friend. Whatever had come to their rescue, they were making short work of this thing. The scent of blood was thick in the air, but it was a scent tinged with something altogether darker that made her stomach heave as well as her fangs lengthen.

The creature gave one final roar, a last act of defiance. The grey blur went straight for its bared throat. There was a spurt of black blood. Silence.

The two Vampire females let out a long breath that they hadn't known they held. But even Hinata felt fear when one of the blurs, now stationary and clearly defined, raised its muzzle to look at her. A silver-grey wolf that was likely as tall as she with a scar dissecting his left eye.

He scented the air, paused, and growled.

The other blurs now emerged from the darkness to reveal at least one more wolf and – a major surprise as it had moved as fast as the grey – a giant tortoise. There was a slightly smaller one, though it was still a big animal, next to him, patterned black and green and with the barest trace of orange like it's elder. Another wolf approached from Ino's other side and she stiffened at it being so close, but Hinata looked it straight in the eye even as it growled warningly at them to. It's growl died in its throat and Ino had to wonder why it looked so shocked to see her friend.

There was a haze of silver at the corners of their perception and the two turned to see the grey was now in human form.

"Why are two leeches so far from home?" the voice, though clearly laced with distrust, was deep and pleasing on the ears. He was very handsome, Ino thought, with short, spiked silver hair and deep dark grey eyes. He wasn't heavily built, though he was by no means slight, and the muscles were obvious to her night-eyes. He wore a mask over the lower half of his face, but his voice was still clear.

"Please," Hinata began, raising slightly so she knelt on one knee. He shifted to a defensive position at her sudden movement, but when she did nothing else he paused, clearly confused. "Please, we mean no harm, we . . . we come in peace. We only wish sanct-"

His hand was raised, the action had been so swift she had not seen it, but she knew what he had done. She rose to her feet in a low, feline, feral crouch and hissed, baring fangs at the one who had dared to strike her friend, her eyes suddenly no longer just blue, but cold, clear, icy topaz blue. Cold and hard and glittering like jewel chips.

Several warning growls issued from behind the silver-haired man, telling her that more wolves were behind him where she couldn't clearly see. But strangely no sound issued from behind her, where the brown wolf stood.

"You speak false, leech." Hinata flinched at the derogatory word. Ino hissed louder in warning, the sound feline, like a cat about to strike.

"I-i don't speak false." she whispered, but all around her had keen ears and could hear her clearly. "I speak the t-truth." ignoring the stutter that had entered her speech, she turned to stare up at him defiantly. "A-a life for a life. I am owed two, and I come to collect on the debt."

Ino was proud of her for forcing the stutter from her voice.

The man was mocking, and several short barks from the others sounded like canine laughter. "And why would we owe two lives to a leech? What miracle did you perform?" the dark eyes glittered.

"I saved two of your own." Hinata said firmly. Ino was busy staring at him, her mind ticking over some elusive fact.

"Saved? I don't call draining someone of their blood or killing them a rescue." anger tinged the tone now as well as sarcasm. Ino dearly wished that Kaida had been there; Kaida could have a tongue like a whip.

But still her mind chased that elusive thought.

"I did not kill them!" Hinata's suddenly raised voice startled Ino as much as it did the man and several of the wolves. She was even more startled by the sight of tears in the lavender eyes. "I released them!"

And the memory clicked into place. "Oh my god it's you!"

All eyes turned to the blonde, whose eyes were no longer cold and hard but wide and shocked. "You! I saw you! In his mind!" she pointed as she spoke, the pale hand trembling.

"You are the ones that held Asuma and Naruto?" that voice darkened dangerously. "Then a debt is owed indeed." Ino never saw him move. He was suddenly not there. And then something rushed past the girls and she covered her ears the din was so loud and so terrible.

When they opened their eyes again, the brown wolf was standing protectively in front of them.

The man was standing a few feet from him, clutching a rip in his arm. "Asuma, why do you stop me? They are Vampires, they'll kill us all if we don't kill them first!" he demanded.

A silver haze ran over the wolf's form and it rippled into a man both girls recognised. "Because I owe a debt, and they have come to collect it." he answered simply, turning to look Hinata over almost affectionately before giving Ino a quick glance and facing forward again. "Kakashi you would do well to remember our Caste's ways."

"They are leeches! Our ways are not theirs, do not apply to them!" Kakashi barely blocked the punch that asuma threw at him.

"Lady Hinata is under the protection of Naruto and myself. Jiraiya also holds responsibility for her. Her friend is covered by this protection by association." a grim smirk alighted on his lips. "You wouldn't go against Jiraiya now, would you Hatake?"

Kakashi's mouth moved soundlessly before he growled warningly. "And why should we trust them? You have been beguiled, Asuma."

"We're marked!" Ino blurted.

All eyes turned to her and she blushed. Hinata looked at her questioningly, and Asuma's eyebrows had hit his hairline. She removed her glove and held up her arm for everyone to see. "We are both marked. On our honour as Vampires, and on the honour of our clans, we mean no harm and wish no ill. We only ask sanctuary." her lips trembled as they locked with the dark grey eyes of Kakashi. "Please."

He said nothing, just turned to look at Asuma. When the other shrugged both looked at Hinata. At Ino's nod she lipped the shoulder of her shirt to reveal the inky black that marked her pale skin. Both men gasped and Asuma's eyebrows went even higher.

The smaller tortoise shimmered and a black-haired, black-eyed youth stood in it's place. "By the love of youth she is marked like Naruto!"

The two girls looked nonplussed at the proclamation, and even Kakashi's eyes twitched as the youth bounded over to grasp Hinata's arm, taking no heed of the fact that she could easily kill him in the process. He turned her this way and that, and Kakashi was shocked to see that neither girl attacked. If anything the blonde was looking at the other with an expression that clearly said that Hinata had been hiding things from her.

"She is! Gai-sensei she shares our youthful Naruto's mark!"

Ino mouthed _youthful_ in utter confusion as the bigger tortoise shifted shape. This man looked like an older version of the odd boy holding her friend's arm and he stepped forward to examine it too. Then he quickly inspected Ino's arm, gave the girl a wink, then turned to Kakashi.

"She does indeed bear our young friend's mark. We had best wait for Jiraiya before sorting this out."

"And I should bloody hope you would wait for me!"

All heads turned to this new voice. The man who stepped into Ino's sight had long white hair and red markings on his face. He strode past the others, knelt to inspect both girls, then turned to Asuma.

"Your little Lady, I expect?" when Asmua nodded he regarded Ino thoughtfully. "And this must be Keitaro's little Lady." he turned to look at Hinata.

"M-my f-friend," she stammered, standing and grabbing Ino's bare arm to get the blonde to rise with her so that they stood united.

"Ino Yamanaka, my lord." Ino murmured, inclining her head in a slight bow as Hinata did the same.

"Keitaro told me much of both of you, though he was strangely discreet when it came to your identity, Miss Yamanaka." he turned to the others. "These _girls_, are under my protection. Any who dare defy will meet severe consequences." there were various mumurs to this statement as he turned back to face Hinata and Ino.

They guessed he had emphasised _girls_ because he had heard them being called leeches.

"You are welcome in Iwa, Lady Hinata, Lady Ino. You will be safe, I promise. Two lives owed, two granted." he smiled wryly. "You'll have to tell me about your journey here, but first," he turned to Hinata, "I think someone would like to see you." His gaze travelled over their heads to the front gates, where he had come from.

The two had barely turned when Ino let out a startled yelp; something blond had tackled her friend witch such speed she only had time to blink.

"Hinata!"

"N-Naruto?"

"_That_ is the _fox_?" Ino looked shocked, which made Asuma chuckle.

"Yep, that's our Naruto." when he saw the girl look at him then glance away in shame he softened. "I don't hold it against you. We didn't know each other then." he held out a hand.

The bright blue eyes looked at his outstretched hand, contemplating it for a minute. Her caution was amusing, but he didn't laugh. Finally she took it in a surprisingly firm grip and shook it once, her eyes twinkling mischievously. "You don't know what you've let yourself in for."

He did laugh then. "No, I guess I don't." they watched Naruto and Hinata jabbering away, Jiraiya caught their eyes and smiled. Kakashi still looked like he was sulking.

"Is he . . .?"

Asuma followed her gaze. "Who? Hatake?" he chuckled. "It's not your fault. Vamps attacked his family when he was a boy. Jiraiya found him as a pup and brought him to Iwa. He's like Naruto, both are considered orphans as we don't know what happened to their families."

Said man sent Asuma a scowl, but the bigger man only smiled at him.

"Is he . . .?" she gestured with her arm.

Understanding blossomed in Asuma's eyes. "Kakashi, turn around." when the silver-haired man glared at him he sighed. "Come on 'Kashi, you'll have to trust them sooner or later."

Still glaring, Kakashi turned and bared his back to Ino's scrutiny. There on his right shoulder blade and across his shoulder was an intricate swirl of marks. They didn't go over onto his collarbone, and they didn't go past a centimetre or so of his arm, and they centred around a small multi-point star-burst on the shoulder blade itself, as though it was a super-nova surrounded by flames.

"How many of you are marked?" Ino asked, the awe evident in her voice.

Surprisingly, Kakashi was the one to answer her. "Myself, Asuma, Naruto, Jiraiya, another called Anko." he shrugged. "There might be more, but I don't know them."

Naruto walked back towards the front gates, Hinata being towed along behind him. Ino laughed at the slight blush that had spread across her cheeks and followed when Jiraiya beckoned.

Suddenly, Naruto turned around and stopped, beaming. "Thanks again Pervy Sage!"

Everyone fell about laughing as Naruto marched on again with a giggling Hinata. Jiraiya's eye twitched and he was silent for a few seconds before . . .

"NARUTO!"


	6. And So It Begins

**Ok, it took some tinkering, but it got there. Sorry for any mistakes i haven't corrected; my proof-reader's on an excavation in Caerleon (T.T) i wanna hug! *sniffs* Ah well, i'll have to make do. Anyway, so here i sit, lollipop in hand, and i wonder . . . just what the heck do i call this sodding chapter anyway? Anyway, with regards to comments and concerns;**

**Jasper: i know you probably aren't gonna read this note, because that was the gist of your message and i'd have to be a complete moron not to see the gist of your message. I like to think i'm not a complete moron but what the hell maybe i am because i'm typing this up just in case :D Anywho, i thank you for your honesty, even if i'm a little disappointed that you didn't like it because of that one little detail, but you can't please everyone and thank you for at least giving my story a try. I just can't equate Naruto with anything but a fox. Whenever i write a story like this one i always turn him into a fox without thinking about it. He's just so . . . foxy-like :D Maybe you should try the story _Lunar Blood_ instead, you might enjoy it better. At any rate, thank you for saying that the general _idea_ is sound, i appreciate it.**

**I can't remember if there were any others now . . . oh well i'll get round to them if there are (XD). And this is where i start to keep a promise too, though it's only small for now.**

**Enough of my rambling, enjoy! **

**Eb x**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Five: And So It Begins . . .<strong>

Jiraiya watched as two young women, barely out of their teens in appearance, entered his office and closed the door behind them. One, a blonde with sky-blue eyes, was biting her lip nervously and playing with the long lock of hair that fell over her eye. The other, paler of skin and with hair of deep indigo and eyes of pale lavender, looked serene unless you looked closer and saw the worry in her eyes.

"You called for us?" Ino asked quietly.

The girls were Vampires, the first of their kind to set foot inside the 'Shifter capital of Iwa willingly and as guests. They had been there now for several weeks, resting and recovering from an attack made on them by a monster of unknown origin and seeking sanctuary. And while some of the 'Shifter Caste had accepted them with varying degrees of ease, others had been less than welcoming.

"I understand that the apartment I gave to you both was broken into last week." he began, watching them both carefully. He omitted to say _again_.

"Was it Naruto, or Asuma that told you?" Ino replied, frowning. The girls had asked their friends, the few that they had here, to keep quiet about the incident.

"Actually, it was Anko." he had introduced them to the violet-haired, slightly insane snake 'Shifter a few days after they had arrived. Anko had taken to both immediately and fussed over them like a mother hen, if such a thing were possible for a serpent. "I had to stop her hunting them down and bringing them to her version of justice."

Ino stifled a giggle, but Hinata, still not speaking a word, remained neutral. This worried Jiraiya, as the darker-haired girl had not reacted well to some of the things that were being said not-so-quietly behind her back. Ino had explained that, despite being trained as a fighter and, for lack of a better word, a killer for their Caste, Hinata was very soft-hearted and easily hurt. So was Ino, but that was beside the point right now; Ino gave grief straight back to those that dealt it to her.

"I have dealt with the matter myself." Jiraiya continued, still watching Hinata. "But it's not the only thing I need to talk with you about." He stood and walked around the desk, leaning back against it as he studied the two girls carefully. "I received a request for a meeting, from Tsunade, the Witch Princess."

Both Ino and Hinata jerked slightly at the name, and their mouths opened slightly, eyes wide.

"She has requested that I meet and talk with her. I now know the place is to be a forest outside of the Witches' capital, Konoha. But she has sent me a further request." he paused and gave each girl a long, hard look. "She has asked that the both of you be present."

"Wh-what? B-but how?"

"How does she know we're here?"

He waited until Ino's ranting died down, listening absently as she spouted off several expletives intermingled with demands as to how exactly the most powerful of Witches knew who they were and where they were. He had to chuckle; Ino Yamanaka had quite the vocabulary. Through it all, he watched Hinata standing quietly. She hadn't moved a muscle and he could see the fear in her eyes as well as worry and, of all things, curiosity.

Finally, Ino was silent, pausing for breath, and he stole his chance to speak again. "I sent an immediate response that the only way you two would be present at all would be if you consented. If you don't want to go, i'll leave you in the care of people I know I can trust to keep you both safe. If you want to go, then those same people will come with me." he paused, and this time his chuckle was almost a laugh. "She said that it was fair enough, though one member of her party would be incredibly disappointed."

"Who else is going with you?" Ino asked, blue eyes ablaze.

"Naruto and Asuma, Anko. All three wish to be your bodyguards. Kakashi is coming with me, as well as Gai and Lee and another young wolf that I want you to meet first." he gestured to the door, "You can come in now."

The door opened, and in walked the afore mentioned 'Shifters plus one more; a female. Her eyes were a fierce dark brown the same chocolate shade as her hair, which she had swept up into twin buns one either side of her head.

"Ino, Hinata, this is Tenten, one of our best female warriors."

The two Vampires bowed to the newcomer politely, and Tenten was taken aback by this. Naruto gave her a bright smile before greeting both girls with hugs, and Asuma did the same. Anko grabbed them both into a bone-crushing grip.

"It's nice to meet you, Tenten." Hinata said, turning from Naruto and giving the young she-wolf a warm, shy smile.

"Nice to meet you too." was the absent reply. The brown eyes were surprised; Tenten hadn't expected the two Vampires to be so nice despite what the others – even Kakashi – had already told her.

"Tenten has been on several missions, back-to-back, for the past several weeks, starting a few days after your arrival. The latest one was to scout out the area designated as the meeting point. Tenten." he inclined his head to her.

"What?" still bemused, it took Tenten several seconds for her mind to catch up. "Oh, right, yes sir." She stood straighter and to attention. "The Witches haven't entered the forest since the location was sent to you, except for a few. It's always the same group, and Tsunade is among them. So far as I can tell there're no traps set up around the perimeter, and the spells they were placing upon the forest seemed to have more to do with protection than than anything else. But i'm not an expert on ha-"

Jiraiya cleared his throat loudly and gave her a stern look. Tenten stopped talking, had the decency to look mildly ashamed of herself, and continued, correcting her wording.

"I'm no expert on Witches and their spells, so I couldn't tell you whether i'm right or not. All in all, it seems like standard preparation for something like this."

Jiraiya nodded his thanks, giving her one more stern look before turning his attention back to his city's infamous guests. "There you have it. The situation as it stands. And your decisions will be?"

Ino looked at Hinata and the two seemed to confer silently. There was no sound in the office for several minutes before Jiraiya, feeling strangely nervous, cleared his throat. "If you decide to stay, then Anko, Asuma and Naruto will stay with you and keep an eye on you until I return. The last thing I need is for any more mischief right now."

The 'Shifters all shifted slightly, each nervous in their own way.

"Lord Jiraiya," all eyes turned to Hinata. "Why did Tsunade request this meeting?"

The white toad sage rubbed his side slightly. "She is Marked, like you and Ino are."

He wasn't sure whether to be scared or merely uncomfortable when the eyes of both girls locked onto his unconscious gesture, and he lowered the hand immediately. There was another long silence, and then Hinata sighed and lowered her eyes in defeat.

"We'll go." Ino announced, her blue eyes triumphant.

Jiraiya grinned and clapped his hands together. "Well, in that case," he turned to the small slug that had been perched on the back of his chair, drawing the attention of the others to it for the first time. "Katsuya, if you would kindly take my response to your mistress?"

The small blue slug bowed her head and disappeared in a puff of pale blue smoke.

"She was in here the whole time?"

"You sound uneasy, Kakashi." Jiraiya noted, still looking insanely cheerful despite the silver wolf's mild panic.

The silver-haired wolf swallowed a little. "Jiraiya, you do know what you're doing, right?"

Naruto laughed. "You know that beyond his so-called research, Pervy Sage makes things up as he goes along."

Jiraiya growled. "Naruto . . ."

"Kakashi, you were wrong about Ino and Hinata, even you admit it now. You need to relax when it comes to the other Castes some." Asuma scolded his friend.

Grumbling, Kakashi pointed out the obvious. "Maybe, but there's still over half of each Caste that would like my tail and yours as a trophy."

As funny as the comment was, it was also a very sobering thought. Ino, Hinata and Tenten all bit their lips, while everyone else shuffled around a little. Ino muttered something under her breath.

"What was that?" Kakashi was sure that he had heard his name in there somewhere.

Stubbornly, the blue eyes met his. "I said we really need to introduce you to a friend of ours. You'd like her." she smiled an evil little smile. "Kaida would soon whip you into shape and train you well."

Everyone laughed again, this time at the undignified expression on the silver wolf's face.

* * *

><p>Tsunade was speaking with Ibiki when Katsuya appeared on her shoulder and whispered in her ear. The blonde's expression went from surprise, to thoughtfulness and then to triumph and anticipation in the space of a few seconds.<p>

"Really? That's excellent news. Thank you, Katsuya, you can go rest now."

When the blue slug – Ibiki had been a bit confused to see her at such a small size when she usually towered over most of the buildings in Konoha – disappeared in a grateful puff of smoke, he raised an eyebrow. "Good news I take it?" he asked his Princess.

She beamed at him. "Wonderful news." she said, her light brown eyes sparkling happily. "A plan is coming together nicely." she clapped her hands together and turned to Shizune, who was standing off to one side. "Go and find all our lovely little volunteers and inform them to get ready to roll out."

The dark-haired woman nodded obligingly and left to fulfil the request.

"You seem much too pleased, Tsunade." Ibiki's voice was carefully devoid of most emotions, but he couldn't hide his wariness.

Her response as she led him out of her office and outside was to turn and smile mischievously. In his eyes that expression id not bode well. It usually meant that she was about to drive him insane. Or try to, anyway. Not for the first time in his life, Ibiki shook his head in silent sympathy for Shizune and wondered how the woman could put up with their Princess and her antics.

Apparently, Tsunade's little volunteers hadn't been too far away, for they were all there when Ibiki and the Witch Princess exited the main doors of the building. He skimmed his eyes over the group, recognising faces. The three Humans were there too, which caused him to raise an eyebrow.

Clapping her hands to draw their attention, Tsuande grinned. "Now then, I have just received the response from Jiraiya and the answer is yes, to all counts." her golden brown eyes met Shikamaru's and he nodded, keeping his face as neutral as possible. "The meeting is tonight, a couple of hours away in fact, at sunset."

"A bit melodramatic." sighed Shikamaru. "Man, what a drag . . ."

She frowned at him, but otherwise didn't comment. "Anyway, we'll be setting out immediately. I hope you guys didn't make any plans for tonight." she purposely ignored Shizune's raised hand and glowering expression; Tsunade knew full well that her assistant and general keeper had been planning a trip to a hot spring tonight.

"Nobody? Good, now then," she barely resisted grinning at Shizune's expression. "We'll set off now and get there half an hour or so before our friends do."

With that she started walking. The others all looked at each other in a bemused sort of way, and when Tsunade shouted over her shoulder for them to get a move on they ran to catch up.

It took them an hour to reach the forest in question, then another half hour was spent waiting before Temari and Gaara would allow them inside while they checked the area out. Finally they settled into groups, milling about the clearing in which the meeting, an event that would go down in history as the beginning of the end of the war, would be taking place.

Finally Temari came running back from her post watching for their visitors. The 'Shifters had been instructed to approach from a certain way, and she murmured quickly into Tsunade's ear before joining the rest behind her princess. Quickly, they hustled into a line behind Tsunade with the three humans being kept in the middle. Ibiki and Shizune stood either side of Tsunade.

A few minutes later, a silver wolf and a brown wolf entered the clearing. Both were incredibly big animals; Shikamaru guessed that they reached between his elbow and shoulder. They scented the air before coming any further, then swept their gazes around the assembled group. The Witches and Humans stood firm and didn't flinch. Finally the silver wolf turned back and walked casually back into the gloom while the brown one remained behind, now sitting and watching them.

The group watched the wolf back, and this continued for a few more minutes longer. Then a whole array of shapes began to materialise out of the twilight gloom of the forest. First and foremost was a large white toad with unusually smooth skin and red markings on his face, closely followed by a large golden-orange fox, the silver wolf, a very big, very eerie dark purple snake slipping across the ground with nary a sound between the two. Two tortoises, one bigger than the other, lumbered into the clearing with surprising grace. Another, smaller brown wolf with fur a shade or two warmer and lighter than the big male followed behind them.

The line of over-sized animals observed their surroundings and the people in front of them quietly. The snake coiled up so that she resembled a large shiny purple coil of rope and tested the air with her dark tongue, the gleaming eyes bright and intelligent. She turned her large scaly head to the toad and nodded slowly, as though her head were heavy and she didn't want to lose her balance, the movements languid. The toad crawled forward another step, looked at Tsunade, then took another pace forward and another.

Walking to meet him, Tsunade stopped until the two were maybe five feet apart. There was silence in the clearing while the two sized each other up. Both sides were tense.

Shikamaru scanned the menagerie and the surrounding area; no sign of the two Vampires that Tsunade had requested be there. Had they decided not to come after all? Or were they hiding? His tattoo tingled and he glanced at his arm in mild confusion. If he didn't know any better, he could have sworn that for a moment it had pulsed with a light grey-blue light.

"Thank you for answering our request, Lord Jiraiya." Tsunade's voice cut across Shikamaru's thoughts and he dragged his attention away from the curious feeling in his forearm. She made no mention of the Vampires.

The toad was still and quiet for a minute more before a silver haze ran across his form. The body lengthened and shifted until the glow died down, and the man standing before them with long white hair, quick dark eyes and red markings on his face was in its place.

"A delicate phrasing, Princess Tsunade." the voice that issued from his mouth sounded amused. "And here I thought that witches were arrogant and aloof."

The Witches standing behind Tsunade moved slightly and their expressions hardened. The faces of Shikamaru, Ayame and Haku remained impassive. The movement drew Jiraiya's attention, and he scanned the faces curiously but casually. The casualness disappeared when his eyes found Shikamaru's arm.

"We have found that some things are outdated." Tsunade drew his attention back to her. Her hand rested on the right side of her waist.

Jiraiya felt a similar sensation of tingling on his tattoo, like a mild case of pins and needles dancing across the pattern. Strange, though, that it only seemed to be on the coloured skin. "It seems you have been busy." he gestured with his hand towards the three Humans safely nestled within the group of Witches.

A smile spread across her lips slowly, with all the cunning of a fox or a cat. Jiraiya had to wonder what she would be had the woman been born a 'Shifter. "So have you. You seem to be missing two members of your party though. Did they fall behind?"

Dark eyes found Shikamaru's arm once more. "Hiding until I give the word. We gave our word that they would be safe and it's a promise I intend to keep." the dark eyes met Shikamaru's now, and curiosity burned deep within them. Shikamaru met his gaze steadily, matching him stare for stare.

Chuckling, the white toad sage turned and nodded to the brown she-wolf, who turned and bounded back into the forest a little ways with the fox. "I didn't know that there was a pairing within the ranks of the Marked."

The other 'Shifters now looked at the Human too. The snake edged forward slightly, her body language suggesting she was intrigued as she slid over grass and leaves towards him. Shikamaru took a step forward even as the others tried to stop him, knelt and held out his arm to her.

Her next hiss sounded suspiciously like a dry, rasping chuckle. The forked tongue flickered out as she raised her head and a foot of her body from the ground, dancing across his marked skin with a feather's caress. It tickled, and his lips quirked in response. When he next looked up from his arm he was staring straight into dark eyes that glittered enticingly. Suddenly he understood why mice and birds were so enthralled by their predators. There was intelligence burning behind those dark eyes, curiosity and amusement, but above all respect and a warning.

Standing, he watched with abject fascination as she glided in a circle around him, observing him from all angles. When she reached the front again she rose until her face was level with his once more, the bottom section of tail coiled beneath her like a cushion. Or a spring.

Behind him, the atmosphere was tense, waiting. If the snake wanted to kill him she had the perfect chance, and they wouldn't get there in time to stop her. But she looked over at them in amusement before turning her flat head back to her lord with a hiss and a sigh. He chuckled at whatever she was saying. Silver shimmered along her scaly shape, and suddenly he was looking into the eyes of a woman with short violet hair and eyes more than a little amused and a fair bit mad.

"The kid's got guts, Jiraiya. I like him." her grin was insane. Her voice rasped slightly, like the snake's scales across the ground, and the _S_-sound was drawn out only very little in her words. "What's your name, kid?"

"Shikamaru Nara." he replied at a small nod of assent from Tsunade. "And i'm not a kid." he added, a little irritated.

She grinned again. "You are to me Shika-boy. I'm way older than you."

Behind her he saw the fox and she-wolf re-enter the clearing. Alone. "Man, what a drag, an insane snake's taken a liking to me."

Blinking, the snake 'Shifter looked at him for a full thirty seconds before she burst out laughing, then ruffled his hair. "You'll do just fine in this world, kid. Anko Miterashi." she added by way of greeting, then she stepped aside and looked at her leader. "I really like this one. Kashi's not allowed to go near him, ok?"

The other 'Shifters let out varying forms of chuckles. Tsunade was smiling at him warmly, pleased. "Shikamaru came to us a few weeks ago. He was being attacked and two of my retrieval team rescued him from a thing." she fluttered her fingers vaguely at the word _thing_. "Which brings me onto a point I feel I really need to tell you about." her golden-coloured eyes became serious. "Did you know that the Marked of all the Castes are being tailed?"

"By you?" Jiraiya seemed amused.

"No, by something that wants to kill them." Tsunade replied with a grave edge. "All three of the Humans were attacked openly, and one of our number was as well. There was no intent to capture, only to destroy. And every time it was by some gods-damned monster that was a mockery of nature."

Moving restlessly, the 'Shifters all looked at each other. Anko's face was no longer amused, nor was Jiraiya's. They both looked shocked, sombre, even worried. Anko's eyes flickered to a tree and back to Jiraiya, who nodded.

"Our two Vampires were attacked as well." he admitted after a heavy pause. "We had thought it coincidence at the time. Odd, but a fluke." he paused again. "But scouts have reported another creature in our area."

Nodding, Tsunade gave Shikamaru a measuring glance. By this time the remaining 'Shifters had changed back to their human forms. The blond that had been the fox spoke up now.

"P- . . . Jiraiya, what does this mean?"

Jiraiya cast a glance back at him, but returned his gaze thoughtfully to the tree canopy.

Temari stepped forward to murmur in Tsunade's ear, and when the woman nodded she returned to her place beside her brother. The teal eyes shifted until they met a pair of chocolate eyes belonging to the she-wolf, and the two stared each other down until the Witch smirked, causing the other to start slightly.

"I'm afraid it means what I believe each of us has always known." Tsunade replied to the young 'Shifter, her eyes weary and sad. "We are outcasts among even our own kinds, though we're still welcomed by many. Now it seems that somebody wishes us ill. If this continues or gets worse, we will become outcasts for sure."

Grave silence met her statement, but they all knew it to be true. The three Humans simultaneously touched their arms; they had been poked, prodded and sampled by the scientists of their Caste, and it wasn't nice to feel like a science experiment.

"We've made ourselves outcasts anyway," pointed out the she-wolf in an irritated huff. "By helping first Ino and Hinata, and now agreeing to meet with you, most of the 'Shifter Caste is against us. Some mutter that we're traitors, other just sniff, but it all amounts to the same doesn't it."

Regarding her carefully, Tsunade smiled. "We're fortunate, the Witches' Caste grumbles less than the others, though those that do might cause more harm." she added under her breath. Then she looked at the brunette again. "what's your name?"

"Tenten." she replied firmly.

Shizune tapped Tsunade on the shoulder to whisper in her ear. The Witch Princess sighed and looked at the sky before gesturing to several small circles of stones nearby, each one containing a small pile of twigs and kindling. With a snap of her fingers, the fires leapt into being. "Cold and darkness aren't known to kindle friendship." she smiled tiredly, gesturing to the fires.

The Witches moved first, picking which out of the three to settle at. The 'Shifters were a little slower, but they joined them. Tsunade and Jiraiya talked at a fire of their own, leaving the rest to mill about as they chose.

"Did you tell them it was alright?" Anko asked the fox 'Shifter irritably.

He nodded. "I think they're taking care of something before they make their entrance." He made a gesture with his eyes and Anko nodded her head, understanding.

"They're staying within the forest though, right?"

They looked around at the voice, seeing one of the Witches looking at them with concern in her jade eyes. Her pink hair looked more red in the firelight.

"We told them to." Naruto replied slowly. "But Ino's a free spirit." he held out his hand to her. "Naruto Uzumaki."

She took it. "Sakura Haruno."

"It suits." he grinned at her.

Grinning back, Sakura replied, "Everybody says that." she gave him a measured look then. "You're the fox right?"

Naruto nodded. "Yep, that's me. Believe it." he added with a wink. It earned him a chuckle from Sakura.

But it earned an eye-roll from Anko. "Not that i'm one to talk, but didn't we beg you to leave the catchphrase at home?"

The bickering that ensued caused raised eyebrows from the other Witches at that fire, namely Sakura and Shizune, and from Shikamaru.

"They do that a lot." It was Tenten. "You'll get used to it. Gai and Kakashi argue too, though Gai's more likely to do the talking." she was gesturing to the specified pair as she spoke, sitting at the next fire. Gai's eyes – the one that they could see anyway – flickered briefly towards them at the mention, and Kakashi fully turned his head to meet their gazes one by one.

"I think Tsunade was expecting more of a problem getting us to socialise." Sakura admitted finally. Naruto and Anko paused in their bickering to listen. "I have to admit, i'm finding it amazing that you're all willing to sit at the fireside with us."

Quiet for a minute or two as many minds mulled this over.

"When you took the Humans in, what did you feel?" the question came from Kakashi.

Shizune and Sakura looked at each other for a moment, considering. "Kinship." they both said at last.

"That's how we felt at first with Ino and Hinata." Gai continued. "Now it's gone from simple kinship to complex friendship, with . . . other possibilities." the eyes of the 'Shifters listening turned to Naruto, who blushed and muttered something incoherent. Gai smiled at him, but didn't comment. "Kinship is what we feel now. It seems that the Marks you bear draw you together, and those that aren't Marked feel a desire to help those friends that are. Kakashi wanted to hate the girls, but he couldn't. It was impossible for him."

Anko looked at him with new respect, and Tenten looked stunned as she said, "You know, I don't think he mentioned youth once in that whole speech."

"Just like the stories." Shikamaru muttered. He was about to elaborate at the others' varying confused looks, but clamped his mouth shut when something fell into his lap. Or rather, _someone_. A very blonde someone with curious big blue eyes.

"I-Ino!" the voice, though quiet, was stern and scolding. "You shouldn't do that to p-people!"

"Hina!" Anko sang, "Hurry up over here, the kit is pouting again!"

The comment caused another round of bickering between the snake and the fox.

Not that Shikamaru could hear a word they were saying. His world was suddenly only big enough to contain a big pair of blue eyes and the sudden, intense tingling running up and down the marks on his forearm.

She seemed to be having the same problem.

"Ino, g-get off the poor boy!" her friend was now trying to get the blonde's attention. She actually began to pick her up and then deposited her back onto the forest floor.

"A Human."

All bickering ceased at those two words and Shikamaru suddenly found himself the centre of attention to a mesmerising blue gaze that left him feeling a trifle uneasy and excited all at once.

"You look familiar, Human." she tilted her head at him. "Have I attacked you before?"

The stuttering and spluttering her friend was doing assured him that this was a very odd mood for the blonde to be in. "Not me." he said at last. "Maybe my father."

Her blue eyes continued to observe him for a while. "Yes, yes that must be it." she sighed and then a wicked gleam entered her eyes. The 'Shifters all stiffened for some reason; they looked like they were bracing themselves for something.

Then his world was once again filled with blue eyes and blonde hair as she launched at him and took him completely off balance.

"Shika!"

"I-Ino!" Hinata sounded like she didn't know whether to be scandalised or not.

"What? I'm just saying hello."

"Then say hello like a normal person." Tenten sighed. "He's a Human, you could crush him."

"Pft." she snorted. "He's more versatile than that, aren't you Shika." she rubbed her cheek against his.

"I-Ino, you're scaring him!"

"No i'm not! I'm not, am I Shikamaru? You're not scared of me right?"

Some small part of his mind wanted to nod enthusiastically at this whole scene to say _yes i'm terrified_! But he didn't. Instead another part shook his head, since he still couldn't speak properly and could only just breathe she was holding him so tightly. She happily went back to nuzzling his cheek.

While usually, Shikamaru would waste no time shoving this girl off his lap, for some reason he just couldn't bear to do it to her. Bemusedly he patted her blonde hair, wondering what on earth was wrong with him.

In doing so he caught Hinata's eye. The darker-haired girl inclined her head to him in greeting, then smiled as though she knew what he was thinking. Her pale eyes drifted to the ground between herself and Naruto, where he saw the blond boy had her pale hand caught in his own tanned grip. Sudden understanding flashed through Shikamaru and he smiled at Hinata easily and relaxed. Ino remained in his lap and the rest were amused, but said nothing.

At their own fire, Tsunade and Jiraiya watched the exchange with interest.

"He brings out the light in her." Jiraiya noted with amusement.

"So she's not normally that friendly?" the blonde witch asked quietly.

"From what I can gather, not unless she knows you. Oh, she'll let you know what she thinks of you, but she's only ever tackled Naruto, Hinata, Asuma, Anko and Kakashi like that before. She only does it to Kakashi because it annoys him. The rest just think it's cute."

They chuckled together for a few minutes, observing the growing ease with which the two groups were mingling. Sakura had moved the two fires closer together now and they sat around the twin flames in a large group instead of two separate ones.

"Tenten is right, however." he added after a minute's silent contemplation. "He is Human, she could crush him easily without a thought."

"I don't think it will be so easy."

Looking up, he saw a smirk on Tsunade's lips.

"I think nature thought of that problem a long time ago. We ran tests on them soon after they arrived in Konoha. You see, all three of them, Ayame, Haku and Shikamaru, have far more endurance and strength than most Humans, and so far as I know none of them were trained to improve those areas of skill." she looked at Jiraiya, grinning. "It's almost enough to place them on a par with my own Caste's levels. Makes you wonder who they'll be paired with."

"You think that's why?" when she nodded he sighed. "It would make sense. We noticed that Naruto developed stronger feelings for Hinata than friendship almost from the word Go. And from what we've seen she has stronger feelings too, though she doesn't show them so openly. And Ino's behaviour towards the boy." his eyes watched the two pairs, now sitting together, as they laughed and talked like the oldest of friends. "You said there were more pairings?"

She nodded, retrieving a folder from a pack he hadn't noticed before. "And now that I know who the white toad is, I know there are actually three in this clearing." she grinned as she handed it over.

He smirked. "Now why don't I feel comforted by that statement?"


	7. A Glimpse of the Future

**Right then,**** update time! At last. sorry folks, i really need to get on top of this already huh. Oh, and hopefully i might have a job within a few months! Yay!**

**This has been mostly beta'd by my lovely onee-chan Haruka Tenou Distant Sky King and by my boyfriend Luke. Biased opinions? Possibly, but they do an awesome job, and they make sure i keep writing by pestering me ^.^' Of course you all keep me writing too, by reviewing and pestering me that way :D Thank you to all the reviewers and readers who help me keep this fic alive.**

**As you can see, i'm in a slightly weird mood right now, so i'll let you go without too much hassle so you can go meet some of the more adult characters of the story 'kay? Oh, and a happy early birthday to my onee-chan, good luck to all countries currently participating in the 2012 Olympics (GO GREAT BRITAIN!) and a merry Lammas for tomorrow to you all. Autumn is just around the corner now folks!**

**Ebony Mitsu x x x**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Six: In which we meet some of the other messengers of Fate<strong>

Neji Hyuuga sat beneath a tree in the middle courtyard of the Hyuuga estate, watching the dawn slowly bleach the night sky from a peaceful, mysterious deep indigo to a pearly, overcast grey. He decided that it was appropriate somehow.

He had fed recently, as evidenced by the more healthy pallor his skin held today, and the boost in strength and speed had been incredibly useful on his last mission. A group of 'Shifters had been attacking an outpost some miles away, but nobody had been able to get an idea of what types they were or what they were after. even now, they were still unsure of what was going on. All Sasuke and Neji had come away with was fistfulls of coarse dark fur. The fur had been taken to the appropriate persons for examination, and the two boys were finally able to relax. Somewhat.

Finally, after what felt like hours of waiting, long after the sun had finally risen over the trees and rooftops he could see, a servant approached and bade him to follow. At last he would find out why the arrogant idiots had summoned him.

Although he had never openly admitted it, he sided with his cousin, Hinata, on at least one thing about their Clan; the elder council that aided the Clan leader were a bunch of pompous old windbags that didn't always know what they were talking about and often had more interest in self-preservation and the maintaining of particular 'traditions' that were vastly outdated.

It was one thing that had endeared Hinata to him; that she thought that those traditions should be abolished. He touched his forehead absently as he followed the Created through the halls to the chamber the elders used as a council room. Unfortunately, what endeared her to the branches of the Clan did not endear her to the main pillar. Probably why she wasn't considered a strong candidate for the leadership, he reflected.

Sometimes he just wanted to wring the elders' scrawny necks.

When she had left a month ago to visit relatives in another village-slash-outpost, he had agreed with her that it was for the best. The escape of the two 'Shifters had riled everybody up and accusations were, discreetly, being thrown around. Neji had agreed with her that some time away and some distance were probably best.

His curiosity over the summons soon turned to fear and worry when, almost before the servant had closed the door behind him, the elders began peppering him with questions. How close was he to Hinata? Was she acting strange before leaving for her trip? Did she talk to anyone unusual? Who were her friends? Did she say anything strange? Did she tell Neji anything at all about her plans?

He answered as best he could with what he knew and had been told, but even his saintly patience had to snap at some point. It was after several minutes of watching Hiashi, his uncle, sitting in a corner with hands fisted on his knees, that had done it.

"For the last time I don't know!" he yelled.

The elders, and Hiashi, all twitched slightly at the sudden outburst. One elder then went to snap back, but Hiashi stood and raised a hand.

"It's alright. We have been putting pressure on him, and it's unfair to expect the young man not to shout with these endless questions."

That startled Neji a lot; Hiashi rarely, if ever, acknowledged most of the branch families. Even rarer was his standing up for his nephew.

"Neji, I understand that this must be stressing, but you have to answer our questions. We have good reason for asking them."

Neji imagined that his healthy pallor rapidly turned a ghostly pale colour instead. Worry clawed at his stomach, though he didn't show it. "If you would tell me why, perhaps I can come up with more relevant information." he pointed out, barely able to restrain his own irritation.

The elders all muttered amongst themselves, clearly thinking he was out of line. But they stopped when Hiashi raised a hand again. "He's right, how can he answer when he doesn't know what we're asking him?" the elders were stubbornly silent at this.

"What's happened to Hinata?" Neji asked suddenly. He had the oddest sensation of having a bucket of ice water dumped over him before the feeling settled in his stomach like a cold, hard knot.

"We don't know." Hiashi admitted, his brow furrowing in a mixture of emotions; fear, uncertainty, anger, worry. All the emotions a father would feel when something odd was going on concerning his daughter. "What did she tell you before she left?"

"That she was visiting an aunt's branch family for a while." Neji answered truthfully. The knot tightened. "Why?"

Hiashi fixed him with a long, hard look. "Because she was never there."

Meanwhile, on the other side of the central parkland, another group of vampires was receiving news of their own.

Kaida's face was like thunder. "What." The word was said calmly, her face polite but otherwise neutral, and it caused those with her to share wary glances.

The messenger swallowed as discreetly as he could, all the while wishing he was anywhere but here, among a group of the Caste's strongest, most powerful and most feared. Three of these particular vampires were in the running for the next Princedom, and with good reason. "The High Council wishes your presence at a hearing to discuss a troubling matter."

"You mean an interrogation." Kaida corrected him, still using that eerily calm voice. When he said nothing a spark of emotion entered her eyes. "You can inform the council that I will be there, but that I am not pleased with the way they are treating me." she turned away.

"I-is that all?" he stuttered, surprised.

Slowly, she turned to look over her shoulder. "I don't shoot messengers." she informed him airily.

"Because she'll shoot us instead." Deidera added, smirking in amusement from his lounging position on a divan.

"And then shoot the High Council." Kurenai finished wryly, placing several cards down on the pile from her hand. "Three fives."

"Cheat." Itachi announced, flipping them over; not one was a five.

The messenger bowed as he exited, not turning his back on them; he didn't dare. Now he had to deal with the Council members, and it was sure to be as harrowing as this had been for him.

"Do you know what that was about?" Deidera asked pleasantly, watching Konan place down a single card. Nobody challenged her.

"I have a feeling." Kaida replied dryly, scowling at a statue in a corner. "They wish to 'discuss' Hinata and Ino, I believe."

"So soon?" Kurenai played next. "I'd have given it at least another few days."

"You forget, Hiashi is paranoid about Hinata." Kaida sighed. "Ever since the kidnapping attempt when she was smaller, he's kept her close like a bird in a cage." she chuckled mirthlessly. "Now he reaps his reward."

"Still, it isn't smart of them to simply issue you with a summons. You're of a high-ranking Clan. There are social forms to abide by." the red-eyed woman watched Itachi call and place two aces. "Cheat, I have two and Konan just played two." Itachi merely smiled and flipped his cards back over; two aces. "Damn." She regarded the large pile of cards reluctantly before scooping them up.

Kaida's lips ghosted a smile before falling back into a grim line. "They forget the power I wield. Officially the tally of my Clan is one. They don't include Aka because she is Kohana's daughter, and Ko turned down the Clan leadership and was disowned." regret flashed through dark amber eyes before anger took its place. "My Clan may have been one of those massacred, but it is still as strong as any."

Silence met her words, grim silence. Itachi lowered his hand and stared thoughtfully at the new pile of cards; all that remained of his own were the two Uchiha brothers, Itachi and Sasuke, and a few allied Created, one of whom, Sai, had taken their surname as an adopted brother. Kaida was in the same position, but her Clan's status had been lowered because only she remained in the eyes of the council and the ruling Prince. Neither would ever forget coming home from a joint mission to find their homes in chaos, their families slaughtered, and their lives forever changed. In contrast to the much larger Uchiha family, the Yoshido Clan had contained maybe a little over half the numbers of the Uchiha, but just as much power through their bloodline trait. Now only one wielder of that power remained, and she didn't seem likely to pass it along in a hurry.

Kaida hoped that her young niece would never hold it.

"They make me sick." she said at last, anger lacing her every word. "They sit in their hall night after day debating the best way to control a bunch of bloodthirsty parasites." A fist made connection with the wall, the impact nearly punching a hole through the plaster. "They know nothing about this Caste."

"Still no idea who did the deed." Deidera mused, the display of anger not phasing him in the least. "And we've hit a dead end with our investigation." He shook his head as he watched the card game continue again. "You watched the girls go, I believe, to make sure they made it out safely like I'd asked, yeah?"

"I did."

"Could they know, yeah?"

Another mirthless chuckle. "They wouldn't know the backs of their hands if they were glued to their faces." An unfair comment, but a passable one considering the slight they had just bestowed her. "No, I highly doubt they know."

"Maybe they believe you have something to do with their mysterious disappearance." Konan put in mildly, taking two cards from her quickly dwindling hand. "Two sevens."

"Then she won't be lying when she informs them that she didn't." Itachi eyed her hand thoughtfully, but apparently thought better of whatever it was he was about to say, shrugging instead and looking at Kurenai's hand expectantly. "Strange, however, that we have no summons to this meeting as active Lords, Konan." The two shared a thoughtful glance.

"I dare say Zabuza will be escorting you to this little meeting, yeah?" Deidera watched the card game with amusement before turning his blue eye back to Kaida. "You know, considering you're one of the candidates for Princedom, they're treating you a tad poorly, wouldn't you say?" His nimble fingers played with the end of the long blonde hair that fell over his hidden eye.

"I am like a favourite but unpredictable pet to them." she replied dismissively, peering at Kurenai's hand and pointing out a group of cards. "Something to be respected and, in an odd way, cherished but ultimately feared and treated as though I would turn on them at any time."

"Of course, the fact that the assumption is entirely right has no bearing whatsoever, does it Kai?" the blond quipped sarcastically. She offered him a wry grin and a shrug.

"Just because Asa decides to play up every now and then is not her fault." Kurenai answered for her. "In fact it probably does them good to be scared like that every once in a while. Wouldn't you if a being could implode your heart at a mere glance?"

"Which is precisely why she's a candidate yeah." Deidera grinned. "I knew there was a reason we were friends."

Only listening very absently, Kaida stared out a window and thought about her options. The Council didn't know as much about her as they believed, nor of the others, and while the bumbling fools knew enough to make the group's activities difficult things weren't as impossible as they were believed to be.

One slim hand reached up to rub at her right shoulder without conscious thought, a gesture she made every now and then when thinking or concerned; it gave some comfort. Luckily it wasn't a tell that followed her into work.

"We don't have much longer." Konan said suddenly, mirroring the red-head's thoughts. She turned from the window to look at her long-time friend as Konan ran a delicate and pale hand through her blue hair. "I know you all feel it too, and besides," here she placed another two cards down, "if they're calling Kaida in for questioning, it will only be a matter of time before they do the same to us. Two sixes, I'm out."

Her final statement was met with an assortment of eye-rolling, smirks and groans. Itachi began sorting through the cards, returning them to order.

"Every time!" Kurenai complained. "How do you do it? If it isn't you," she gestured at Konan, "it's her!" she gestured to Kaida. Both women offered up smiles in response.

"Have you not figured it out yet?" Deidera grinned. "It's simple yeah."

"They never play an honest hand." Itachi finished shuffling the deck and placed it back in its box, then stretched as he stood up from his seat on the floor. "Ever."

Kaida chuckled, and even Konan's smile widened a little at the expression on Kurenai's face.

"You're the only one of the Three Ks that's honest yeah." laughed Deidera. He didn't even stop when a kunai embedded itself in the divan by his leg.

He was still laughing when there was a knock on the door and Kaida went to answer it.

"Yoshido." Zabuza's voice murmured from the left. "Dare I ask what you've done this time to warrant our beloved High Council's attentions?"

The laughter within Kurenai's room abruptly ceased.

Scowling openly now, Kaida's eyes flashed as they found him. "Who let you in here?" she asked.

"Corin."

The scowl lessened a little when she realised he hadn't simply sneaked onto her property. She looked around him to the end of the corridor and sure enough there the man stood, watching the visitor with alert eyes. Corin was among the few Created who remained within the Yoshido Compound and with his master; many of the others had fled when all but the Clan Head and her small niece were killed.

"Time to go, kitten." Zabuza's voice brought her out of her grim thoughts, as he had intended.

"First I am a lapdog, now a kitten. Have I really sunk so low?" She looked back to the others, all of whom were watching her carefully.

"Need company?" Konan's slim eyebrow had risen slightly.

Kaida shook her head. "I can handle the Council alone." she offered a grim smile.

"At any rate, I will be with her." Zabuza added unexpectedly. Kaida looked at him, a flicker of surprise in her expression.

"That's what we're afraid of yeah." Deidera snorted.

Kaida ignored the banter; despite the rivalry, they all got on well enough. Instead her focus turned to Corin. "Where is Aka?"

"Asleep, my lady." Corin gave her a short bow. "She was training with Kanaki earlier and we thought it best if she got some rest."

"Of course, thank you." she turned back to the room. "Can you . . .?"

"Want us to babysit yeah?" Deidera grinned. "The munchkin's no trouble."

"At least not when we're around to supervise the two of you." Kurenai corrected him dryly.

Kaida left for the Hall of Council with the laughter of her friends in her ear and an ally by her side.

**o.O.o**

Iruka opened his eyes slowly, groggy and not quite remembering where he was for a few minutes. When he became more alert he recalled the events of the night before, and instantly his hand went to his face as he scrambled for a mirror.

The face that stared back at him was human, overtired, with dark circles underlining his dark brown eyes. Still wearing the dishevelled clothing he had fallen asleep in and with a scar across the bridge of his nose, with hair a dark shade of brown. And just visible, looking almost like a faded shadow at the moment, was a pattern on his left cheek where the concealer had rubbed off.

Sighing wearily, he picked the wash cloth up and ran the hot water. When the flannel was steaming he applied it to his face, wiping all traces of the valuable make-up from his skin. The medium olive tone was still there, but now the pattern stood out boldly, a black brand that made seemed to make his eyes stand out all the more, sweeping across his cheekbone and down his neck, ending at his nape and the junction of neck and shoulder.

A symbol that he was not like most others.

Reaching into the bag he must have dropped by the sink in his half-asleep stupor, he pulled out a large round tub of cream that was just a touch darker than his skin. It didn't matter; it would lighten as it dried until it matched perfectly. This was his mask, quite literally, and the thing that he believed had helped keep him alive for so long.

Twelve years prior, Iruka had been a young lad, with a mother and father that he loved and who loved him.

Until the monster came.

In the space of one night, all he had known and loved was wiped away from him by one cruel, sentient being. The perpetrator of the hideous double murder had never been caught, but Iruka knew it was a man, tall and slim and pale, with glowing yellow eyes, just as surely as Iruka knew that the man's true target that night had not been his parents. They had just been collateral damage, or a bonus, or a trivial obstacle, whichever perspective the murderer had seen.

It had been Iruka.

A part of him blamed himself for not saving them, even though he knew he had been a young boy without much strength to him, and that even if he had tried it would have made no difference; he would have been slaughtered too. That night he had hidden in a hidden cavity of the wall that not even his parents had known about, trying to escape having to wash the dinner things. Nobody had known how lucky that idea had been until _he_ appeared. Even to this day Iruka was not completely certain exactly what had prompted him to choose that particular spot; usually he went to a more convenient hiding place, one that didn't require a good deal of stealth to get into. And while self-preservation and sheer terror had had a hand in keeping him there while it was happening, it had felt like someone was also pinning him in place so that he couldn't move.

Whatever the circumstance, Iruka was grateful to be alive.

He had been on the run ever since. Never in one place too long, never attracting attention. He was of average height and build, and his colouring helped retain the look; he could blend in, wasn't easy to remember. The scar and the tattoo that marked him were really the only things of consequence about him, and while the former was more stubborn about being hidden, the latter was surprisingly easy. Iruka didn't hold on to the past; it wasn't his nature to. Best to leave it where it was, behind him.

Over the years he had discovered his talents. He had a quick mind for one, and the ability to remain rational and clear-headed in tight situations; it had helped enormously more than once. He could see through illusions easily, and create decent illusions himself, and had a talent for erecting telekinetic barriers. He was a fair fighter in a scrap and was also rather good with explosives. But his own unique talent was something usually only found within the animal kingdom. Rather like a bat or a dolphin, he could use a form of echolocation that served many purposes. He could find his way comfortably in utter darkness or work out how many enemies were around a corner. If he focused hard enough he could even see minute details such as trip wires, but this taxed him more than he'd like to admit.

Lately his sleep had been disturbed by vivid dreams; of people gathering and a woman calling to him. There were flashes of the night his parents died, and a voice that sounded suspiciously like his father telling him to get his backside in gear.

He might be more inclined if the woman was calling to him more seductively than the taunting tones he was hearing; _move it or lose it dolphin_ and _hurry up already_ were not in the _most appealing handbook_.

Once the mask was back in place he frowned at his reflection. "Just who is she anyway?" he muttered. With a sigh he turned away, hauling the bag with him. He stopped by the bed long enough to pick up the morning's paper with his free hand and glance down at the front headline and the accompanying photograph of a teenage boy with dark spiky hair, a bored expression and a tattoo trailing up his arm. The article reported him missing, possibly worse. There had been signs of a struggle within the park he had last been seen at. No new leads.

He dropped the paper with a sigh.

Yesterday Iruka had screwed up. He knew all about the unnatural monsters running around the place looking for the marked, and that someone was out to kill them. He had yet to discover who, though. But yesterday . . .

He rubbed a hand over the bandage on his arm. Barely escaped. He'd have to be more careful in future, and this wound wasn't healing up right, he could already tell.

Dropping the paper back onto the bed of the hotel room, he placed a few more items into the bag before closing it up. Leaving his hair down for the moment and forgoing his usual spiky ponytail, he slipped a cap onto his head and pulled the peak down slightly.

Iruka Umino walked out the door without looking back.

**o.O.o**

It was nearing sunset, and Neji placed a few last minute items in his pack before hoisting it on his shoulder and leaving his room, heading to meet his partner, Sasuke Uchiha. They had a new mission; the message had only arrived a few hours ago.

It was not a mission he looked forward to.

He met his partner at the gates to the city, and they shared a look. Much as they didn't want to bring friends back to face this kind of a situation, they had no choice. The orders had been issued by their Prince, and as such they were honour- and duty-bound to obey.

Silently, they set off into the growing night. One way or another, they would find them.

One way or another, they would bring Hinata Hyuuga and Ino Yamanaka back.

**o.O.o**

The sun dipped below the horizon, and Konan shifted from foot to foot at her post by the Yoshido Compound's front gates. Kaida and Zabuza should have been back hours ago.

A chill wind blew, rustling her hair and the paper flower she wore behind one ear. Her fingers fidgeted with a piece of paper in her hands, the creases telling a tale of its failed creation and subsequent use as a hopeless distraction. Her mind couldn't concentrate right now; origami was usually relaxing for her, but worry over her friend was making it difficult to focus.

Some of Kaida's remaining faithful Created had escorted little Aka to her school an hour ago now, shushing cries for her 'sister' along the way. The little girl was due back in another few hours.

Something was wrong; the meeting with the council shouldn't have taken all day. And why hadn't she and Itachi been issued an order to attend? It was troubling.

Something wasn't right.

Konan turned to look down another street, her mind running through possibilities – they had been held up? The topic to be discussed was more complex than Kaida had thought? A different topic? – when movement caught her attention and her grey eyes whipped back to watch a figure make its way through the gloom.

Unease clawed at her gut.

When the figure and its precious cargo, carried limply in its arms, came into clear view, fear shot through her being.

Zabuza was grim as she drew in a shocked, horrified gasp before she shouted, already running towards him and the beaten, unconscious red-head he held close.

"Itachi! Kurenai! Deidera!"

**o.O.o**

Asuma opened his eyes slowly, barely registering that he was, in fact, in his animal form. For a moment he felt a surge of panic; where was he? This wasn't his home nor the home of any of his friends. Then the fear dissipated when he realised he wasn't trapped by silver, or in fact by any means at all.

Feeling relief that his grogginess was simply associated with a difficult night's sleep and not by any form of drug or spell, he stretched carefully and then rose up on his legs, casting a glance about the room. Various forms were scattered about. He could see Naruto's golden orange fur curled up on a circular rug nearby and Hinata leaning against him, sleeping herself. Kakashi was lying near the door, and Asuma noted that someone would probably trip over the guy if they tried to enter without looking at the ground. Anko was coiled up on a chair, her dark violet scales glinting in what could only be firelight. Tenten was lying at the foot of that chair looking vaguely like a fluffy brown pillow, and he could just make out Gai and Lee over in a corner. Jiraiya, he remembered now, had opted to sleep outside.

The night before had been long. Not only had the 'shifters had to travel from one area to the next, but the group had also stayed up late into the night talking about what to do. The leaders of both groups had said that they felt it would be a mistake to part ways now, and that the best course was to stay together. But all agreed that remaining in either city – Konoha or Iwa – would only bring trouble. The witches needed to gather supplies before going anywhere, and so it had been decided to spend a few days in Konoha before heading out.

The younger ones were treating this as a camping trip, of sorts. None of the adults wanted to dismiss this illusion. It was a _dangerous_ camping trip. But none of them felt they had the right to dismiss the idea; if it kept them sane then so be it.

Quietly, he padded over various forms, sniffing the air. Ino's scent still lingered, as did her human partner's and the scents of the witches and humans who had stayed a while before departing. Ino had been loathe to part from her new plaything, as Anko now called him, stubbornly clinging to his arm and never straying far from him for more than a minute at a time, almost as though she was terrified that turning her back on him meant he would disappear forever.

This had produced a very amusing result when Shikamaru had tried to wander off to bed. Though to his credit he had managed to get her to loosen her grip and let him go, she hadn't stayed in the guest room she and Hinata had been placed in. Instead she crept to his room. Hinata had made her appearance in this room soon after.

When he finally made it outside he shifted shape with a sigh of relief. There were so many bodies inside that it was stifling, and much as he loved his wilder, wolf form, he loved his man form just as much.

"You're awake."

Asuma turned sharply to face the speaker. A young man sitting beside a pond, long brown hair loosely gathered into a low ponytail, effeminate but still boyish in charm, with soulful deep brown eyes. He'd been there last night; Asuma couldn't recall the name though.

"Always was an early riser." sniffing the air for morning scents – a habit he never seemed to be able to break even at home – he caught scent of the teenager. Snow and meadow, light and airy, human. "Sorry I can't remember your name. There were so many last night that-"

"It's fine, not everyone is good with names." the young man smiled at him, and Asuma had the impression of the world lighting up just that little bit more. "I'm Haku, one of Shikamaru's friends."

The wolf raised an eyebrow. "No surname?"

"I wouldn't know." was the gentle reply, and Asuma felt himself blanch as the soft voice continued, "I'm an orphan."

"I'm . . . I'm sorry."

"It's fine, really." that gentle smile again. "It's better this way, trust me."

The back door opened again and both turned to see Shikamaru, hair surprisingly not in his customary ponytail as he closed the back door with a foot as he attempted to light up while hopping and wobbling from side to side, all at the same time. When he finally managed the act he took a deep breath and inhaled the sweet, sweet smoke that was his anchor to sanity. "Troublesome woman."

"You don't mean that Shikamaru." chuckled Haku.

Asuma quirked a smile. "I take it you had an interesting time this morning."

Shikamaru threw them both a look that didn't seem to know whether it should be annoyed or otherwise. "Are _you_ used to being used as a teddy bear?"

"She is affectionate isn't she." the brown-haired wolf said thoughtfully.

"She's clingy."

"But with a certain charm, right?" interrupted Haku, eyes glowing with some mischief. "She's sweet, not to mention cute."

This time the glance was definitely warning. "Don't start, Haku. I know what you're thinking and it can stop right there."

"You're blushing."

When Shikamaru suddenly glanced away, swearing under his breath and hiding his eyes behind his hair, Haku's gentle, glowing smile, which had yet to really leave his face, grew a little bigger. "It's sweet. I can only hope to find something like this."

"You're a hopeless romantic, you know that?" though the words were snapped, Asuma could tell that there was no true force behind them. The kid breathed out more smoke. "I didn't realise vamps could sleep."

_'And an innocent.'_ the wolf decided. Haku was innocent as an angel, yet was still involved in this. But his sharp eyes picked up on something else beneath all that. The angel had a core of steel. _'Interesting.'_ It seemed there was more to humans than he'd at first wanted to admit. His mind flashed back to a flash of panic he had felt at sunset the day before, one that had nothing to do with the situation at the time and had no true explanation. His mark had tingled, the feeling resembling a mild burn in some ways, and it had been unpleasant. The impression had lingered long after the initial sensation had faded.

Shikamaru took a another drag on the cigarette between his fingers. "Do you have any idea what I went through to get out here?"

Stroking his chin, Asuma shared a wry glance with Haku. "Let's see, Kakashi was in the doorway, Gai and Lee both near the other exit of that room. And that's not including getting away from Ino first without waking her up."

The look sent to him was so calculating it sent a shiver up his spine. "I think I liked you better asleep old man." ignoring the amused chuckles, Shikamaru inhaled deeply, then let a stream of smoke slip out. "This is only going to get more dangerous as it goes on. What a drag."

The other two really didn't have anything to say to that

"Which direction did we agree to go again?" he breathed out more smoke.

"South." the new voice was not much more than a sleepy croak. The white toad reached at least Shikamaru's waist and appeared to yawn even as his shape shifted in a haze. When Jiraiya was fully sure he was in one shape again he suppressed another yawn, waving away Asuma's short bow. "What do I keep telling you lot?"

"To stop it." Asuma grinned.

"And how many more times must I tell you to stop doing that?" Jiraiya grumbled.

The grin grew wider. "At least once more."

"Figures." Jiraiya stretched slowly, yawning again, then opened one dark eye and watched as Shikamaru took another drag on his cigarette, amusement plain. "This should be interesting, all we heard from Ino on our way here is how her partner hadn't better be a smoker. It's a . . . what did she call it again?" he sat cross-legged on a large stone near Haku while he recalled her words. "Ah, yes, I remember now. A disgusting habit. Death-sticks. She threatened to destroy any and all cigarettes she could find if anyone was. Asuma's only gotten away with it because he keeps his out of reach."

Shikamaru snorted softly in disbelief, but the others were quick to notice how his face paled just a little when he thought they weren't looking.

"Our group's made up of a lot of orphans though." Asuma commented thoughtfully, staring at a cloud. "Anko, Kakashi, Naruto, Haku, some of the others. It makes you wonder a bit."

"How much did he tell you about it?"

Asuma and Jiraiya both glanced at Shikamaru in surprise; his voice rang of steel.

"Shikamaru." Haku said softly, staring at the ground in front of him.

"Not much, I'm betting. I overheard before I could get out of the mad house." he jerked his head back the way he'd come. "Bet it was next to nothing."

"Shikamaru." Haku spoke a bit louder now.

"Did he tell you why?"

"Shikamaru!" ice dripped from every syllable Haku had uttered, and damn if the atmosphere didn't grow a few degrees colder. Both 'shifters were alarmed at the sight of their breath appearing in frigid clouds.

Apparently unimpressed, Shikamaru frowned. "You know, you've got nothin' to be ashamed about." he informed the smaller boy dryly. "I'd have done the same, so would Ayame. And I bet my _dirty habit_ that any of them would have done too."

"But it is not for you to decide." Haku told him firmly, fingers playing idly with a thin needle that glinted and had appeared from nowhere, and Asuma found himself wondering how concerned about the fact he should be, seeing as Shikamaru eyed the tiny thing as though it were Anko on a bad day.

A _very_ bad day, if that wary expression was any guide.

The back door opened again, and when Asuma turned back to look the needle had vanished.

"Ah, good. You're all still alive." Temari drawled sagely. She pointedly ignored the various glares she received. "I must say I don't think I've ever seen Lady Tsunade's house so crowded unless she's throwing another of her parties." the smirk she gave was almost feral, and reminded Jiraiya strongly of the sandy wildcat she had been when they had first met.

"Forgive me, but what is south?"

At the sound of Haku's curious voice, the others all turned to look. Shikamaru was also wondering, but hadn't thought to ask, which was unusual.

"You don't get out much, do you?" Temari said slowly, her smirk softening into a more neutral expression. "Unless I'm mistaken, Suna is south, right? In the Great Desert Plain?" the question was directed at the two 'shifters currently in their midst, both of whom nodded slowly.

"We need to speak to somebody there before we go any further, and he might be able to help us." Jiraiya said slowly.

"And warn him." Asuma added grimly.

The rest of them watched the two men, but none chose to comment. The lack of trust might sting a little, but it was expected. Only a fool completely trusted someone he had been taught all his life to despise the instant a truce was reached; betrayal might not be far behind, and they hadn't known anybody long enough to get over that yet, friendship aside.

Of course, any and all irritation flew out the window when Shikamaru felt a cool breath ghost across the back of his neck, closely followed by whispered words that were no less dangerous for the softness with which they were uttered. In fact the whole affect was unnervingly menacing. "Is that a cigarette, Shika?"

Jiraiya chuckled as he watched the human male turn around to face the blonde girl staring at him neutrally; it wouldn't remain that way for long. He recalled the mini argument – more a heated debate really – between these two last night when Ino had first tried to follow Shikamaru upstairs and chuckled some more. "Ding-ding, and it's round two folks."

This promised to be entertaining.


	8. A Temporary Respite

**Well, the year is almost over. I know this is belated, and i apologise; i had hoped to get this done by late November, but 't'was not to be. However, i have instead managed to give you all a present for the New Year instead! Yay! I'll include a quick recap at the end of this author note, for those of you who don't want to re-read the previous six chapters, so don't worry if you've forgotten anything; i'll include major plot points and some points of interest. This chapter won't be as long as some of the others, it's part-filler and part-continuation.**

**So, Great Britain didn't do too badly in the Olympics after all, so that's worth something. We didn't embarress ourselves on our home turf (though the archery could have gone better) and congratulations to the winning country! You've done yourselves proud!**

**Hopefully, i'll be on a more steady updating scheme this coming year, but i have two 8 week courses running side by side in January and more throughout the year so who knows. I'll try to keep you posted on my profile.**

**Enjoy**

**Eb x**

_**Previously:** After helping two Shapeshifters escape the Vampire's capital city of Yamitsuki and encountering an informant within her own clan, Hinata and Ino talk of leaving the Midnight city altogether. They leave under cover of darkness, unaware that they are being watched. Together the two travel to Iwa, the 'Shifter's capital, to collect on the life debt that Hinata is owed, and despite encountering resistance (and large slimey scaley things trying to kill them) manage to enter in one piece and collect the debt in the form of sanctuary._

_Meanwhile, a Human named Shikamaru Nara is attacked by a similar creature in his home town, and is rescued by two Witches, Sakura Haruno and Gaara Subaku. They take him to Konoha, the capital of the Witches, and there he falls under the protection of Witch Princess Tsunade Senju alongside two fellow Humans named Haku and Ayame Ichiraku. While residing in Konoha they discover a connection between Castes other than the marks beared by a few; a fairytale handed down for generations. Sakura confirms this story, and several of the beings it mentions. Tsunade sends a messenger to spy on and communicate with the leader of the 'Shifter Caste; Jiraiya. The date is set, and the two groups meet at sunset to discuss the matters at hand. They leave the next day, and have begun to journey in search of answers and support from various allies._

_This same day, trouble brews in Yamitsuki from all corners. The Hyuuga clan have realised their precious princess is missing, and have sent a tracker-assassin team to go and locate them made up of Sasuke Uchiha and Neji Hyuuga, cousin to Hinata. At the same time Kaida Yoshido, the last remaining member of the Yoshido Clan, is summoned before the Council for interrogation over this same matter. She is escorted by one Momochi Zabuza, the Demon of Mists. She returns unconscious in his arms, battered, bruised and bloody. Her treatment and subsequent state has caused uproar among several high-ranking clans._

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Seven: A Temporary Respite<strong>

His eyes snapped open into darkness.

Almost instantly, their alertness faded softly, but the awareness remained. Always the same. The same darkness. The same shadows. Water dripping onto stone. The same cries and calls in the distance, soft despite the desperation and the fear that tainted them, sharpened them. Stark relief against the otherwise all-consuming silence.

One day he had been alive, surely. He had had a home. He had the vaguest possible memory of being attacked, or so he thought if he focused very hard, and of something pricking the skin of his neck as he fought – Them? It? – but nothing more concrete than that. But this. Surely this was not life? It was barely living. Limbo.

No concept of time. No concept of anything, really. He knew he had opened his eyes a few times before, surely. But how long had he been here? Minutes? Hours or days?

Years?

Lucidity returned with every minute that passed, and with it the sensation.

He shifted suddenly, the rustle of cloth like thunder in the silence of the tomb. It was like an itch that he desperately needed to scratch, one so urgent that it burned. Was this what had awoken him?

No. No it wasn't, of this at least he was sure. This sensation only ensured that he remained awake. He distinctly recalled waking with a sharp sense of panic, of the kind he could vaguely recall when he had felt the pinprick at his neck, only worse somehow.

Yet dulled, as though the panic, the pain, wasn't really his.

Lips twitched in a parody of a smirk. He really was insane; his family had been right all along.

Footsteps echoed outside the small cell. The wails grew quiet, as though the ones making the terrified sounds were even more scared of the walker than they were of the place.

A sense of urgency overtook him. Quickly he began to flex his fingers, his toes, moving to his arms. At least he was still in good shape; they were flexing easily, feeling returning quickly. At least that ruled out the possibility of years having passed. Gods this place was cold. And such a sickly smell . . .

The door opened, a shaft of low light peering through into the gloom of his prison. He grew more desperate. No, no not again. He would take no more of their poison! He was through lingering in dark oblivion!

"Awake again, I see." Fingers probed his muscles with all the ease of an expert. "This has been happening more frequently of late. Perhaps a higher dosage is in order." The fingers moved away, fiddling with something he couldn't see. The voice was cool, calm, pleasant even. But there was nothing pleasant about this damned place.

He raised his arms, the frustration surging through him when the movement was more sluggish than he'd like. Still he managed to place a hand on a wrist as it came near, his grip too tight for anybody's comfort – though not tight enough for his own – and someone else had to pry him off the slim pale wrist. Hands held his arms in place and he thrashed his legs weakly instead. Moving his head in a vain attempt to delay the inevitable.

The person made a humming noise. "Maybe I should see about a different formula instead." they mused. "Any higher with this one and it could kill you, and we wouldn't want that now would we?" the tone was mocking, inciting his rage further. The fire became a roaring blaze when the metal of the needle was inserted into the skin of his arm once more, joining several similar marks on his clammy skin.

"He is becoming far too lively for my liking." the voice continued, now speaking to somebody else. "We need to correct this little problem before it grows out of control. He is too dangerous, and we have too much need of him to allow him to escape."

The voice faded out, but he knew, sullenly, that the speaker hadn't left. Instead it was he that was leaving, straight for the oblivion he so hated and feared.

His last thoughts before the darkness overtook his senses were that the burning sensation, muted but still there and for that he was grateful, was centered on a very specific spot on his body.

And whether _she_ would feel him too.

**o.O.o**

Kakashi watched idly from his place as rear guard while Ino forced Shikamaru into conversation. What they were talking about remained a blurred mystery; so far over the course of the morning she had gone through his home town, his family and friends, and had kept returning to his 'bad habit'. Ino could talk at a mile a minute and it was a wonder to all that the human boy could keep up with her as well as he was. Haku, who she had also been talking with, didn't seem quite as capable, but he certainly seemed to know what she was prattling on about this time at least.

Turning dark eyes to his walking companion, he caught another wince. "You need to tell someone about that." he warned as cheerfully as he could manage; he had been tripped over that morning by the pink-haired witchlet as she had entered the room and he could not see the hilarity in the situation that the others did.

Asuma gave him a glare which turned into an amused grin when Kakashi also winced and rubbed at his chest. "When you inform someone about your problem, I'll let them know about mine." the cigarette in his mouth twitched as he spoke, and his voice now lowered to a concerned mutter. "Seriously Kakashi, all I'm feeling are stray emotions that cause a little ache. You are feeling some serious pain, and you've developed bruising on your abdomen overnight. Tell somebody. It's not normal."

The silver-haired wolf cut him a sideways glare. "Since you know so much, what do you think is causing it?" it came out more snappish than he'd have liked, but this was grating on Kakashi Hatake's nerves.

"Phantom pains?"

The higher voice with the lilting tones of a young witch caught their attention and both men darted eyes to the speaker.

"Ah, the little witchlet." Kakashi drawled.

Sakura ignored the irritating nickname. "Any other symptoms?"

"I seem to be feeling someone else's emotions," Asuma said bluntly, "I'm not in a situation that would cause panic and fear myself, among other things. Kakashi's suffering seems more physical."

Much to Kakashi's dismay, she turned inquiring jade eyes to him. "How so?"

Only low muttering could be heard from the silver male.

"He's in pain." Asuma answered for him, ignoring the deadly glare aimed at him. "I'd say he's taken a good beating only I know he's not been in a fight lately. And a bruise has appeared on his stomach overnight."

"Traitor."

Nothing more was said for a few minutes, then she said "I'll have to take a look at that when we set up camp." at the sight of the grouchy stare directed at her she tutted. "At the very least I can help with the bruising, some arnica should help, and perhaps a simple tonic might relieve the pains. It would be quick and easy to whip one up. It's worth a shot and would do no harm." she went quiet again as she thought about it. "But if they're really phantom pains I'm not sure what I can do. I might not be able to help with them. I'll ask Tsunade and see what she thinks."

With that final statement she increased her pace, catching up with her mentor.

"Traitor." Kakashi repeated stubbornly, casting his friend another glare, though this was interrupted by a sudden wince.

"Love you too." Asuma laughed at the somewhat startled look his words produced, then chuckled some more when that was quickly followed by a frown.

"You know I'll be the first to admit that i'm a bit perverted, but people are going to be getting the wrong idea about us, and I'm not gay." the silver wolf muttered in irritation.

"I know." Asuma mused, frowning a little himself. "Strange how we're so completely certain of this, isn't it. We don't even entertain the idea, just dismiss it outright. And not out of denial either."

They paused in their bickering, contemplating the matter.

"I have a theory on that, if you'd like to hear it."

They hadn't even noticed that everyone else had stopped for a break. Sakura already had a fire going and was pulling things out of a pouch while Temari and Tenten had their heads together in quiet conversation on the other side of the flames. It was Shizune who had spoken, and Tsunade was behind her with Jiraiya.

"I presume your Caste also ran tests on those discovered with the tattoos?" when they nodded she gave a faint smile. "Our own results hinted at some interesting possibilities. I wonder if you uncovered similar properties."

Tsunade took over then. "These emotions you're feeling, are they dulled? Like they're distant and not your own? And the pain as well?" at their wary nods she grimaced. "We discovered that the tattoos seem to form a link between pairs. A bond of sorts. We've seen it in action for ourselves once. Five years ago a young vampire assassin was sent after one of our scouting parties. Sakura and myself were a part of the group. Sakura knew he was there before anyone else, and he hadn't made a sound. He was only watching. She looked right at him and shouted a warning right before a monster attacked him. He left before anyone could get his name or even a proper look at him, but we all saw the markings on his neck."

"It's not just with the younger ones either." Shizune added. "The adults feel this bond too. It seems to mature as the bearers get older. What starts off as simply knowing that the other half of the bond exists graduates to knowing when they are nearby, sometimes their location. Then as years pass emotions slip across the bond. Adulthood brings shadows of the experiences of the other. Your pain may not be your own at all; it may in fact be someone else's entirely."

"And the bruises?" Kakashi prompted.

Shizune offered him a smile. "Possibly a physical manifestation. I confess, we haven't seen a fully matured bond yet. Either yours is a strange case, or one of you is fairly old. You'd have to be for the bond to have gotten so strong. That is, if we're right."

He suffered a haunting delusion then of being mated to a haggard old woman. Jiraiya saw the horror in the dark grey eyes and laughed. "I doubt it, Kakashi. I really doubt it." He sobered suddenly and his whole expression, usually so mischievious, became grim. "You're not the only ones, by the way. Anko woke up the other morning in a panic and was convinced that someone was in danger. Apparently Gaara has been dreaming for a while now, Sakura experiences emotions that have no bearing on her circumstances, Shikamaru felt for several weeks as though something was coming nearer, and Ino and Hinata had been travelling to Iwa in that time."

"At least you explain why i woke up with the occassional handprint on my face of a morning." Tsunade added in amusement, looking at Jiraiya. "For the longest time I thought I was doing it to myself."

"Can I help it if I'm misunderstood?"

"Yes."

Jiraiya glared at the speakers; Kakashi, Asuma, Naruto and Ino. "Nobody asked you."

Tenten chose that moment to intervene. "Kakashi, Sakura says she needs to talk to you." the response she got was a calm nod before he walked over to the young witch and her fire, where she had also gathered Haku, Ayame, Sasori and Anko, much to their surprise.

"I'm surprised Temari's let you out of her sight." Tsunade prompted, slanting a sideways glance at Tenten. "That girl can get quite . . . possessive, and she's taken to you faster than I would ever have believed."

The young brunette flushed slightly. "I know. I was really going to head back over to her now." Truth be told Tenten was just as taken with Temari.

Jiraiya meanwhile had watched the girl with such a piercing gaze it raised the hairs on Shizune's skin. "Be careful, Tenten, or you could both be hurt." he said seriously, quietly.

She lost her slight blush instantly, and it was replaced by a grim countenance and just the hint of a wince. "I know, sir. She knew what she was getting involved with from the start." that said, she waited for him to dismiss her before returning to the blonde in question. The adults watched the older girl slip an arm around her waist and draw her nearer as Tenten fell back into the conversation between the Subaku siblings effortlessly.

"And what was that all about?" Tsunade demanded softly, her honey-brown eyes searching his.

Shrugging, the toad sage folded his arms behind his head and stared up at the sky. "Not my tale to tell."

Sensing that they would get nothing more from him, they turned back to watching the others interact during their brief rest.

It was going to be a long journey.


End file.
